


Scar Tissue

by LilacFleur



Category: Deadpool - All Media Types, Spider-Man - All Media Types
Genre: (for backstories anyways), Canon Compliant, Canon-Typical Violence, College Student Peter, Eventual Smut, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Guns, Hurt/Comfort, Identity Reveal, M/M, Protective Wade, Slow Burn, Smut, Suicide mention, Violence, buckle up bois this is gunna be at least 50k, kind of enemies too but its more past tense, sorry mom, whoooop i guess this is gunna be more than 50k lmao
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-02
Updated: 2018-03-07
Packaged: 2018-11-08 03:19:29
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 57,100
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11072976
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LilacFleur/pseuds/LilacFleur
Summary: The deranged serial killer Cletus Kasady - aka Carnage - has escaped prison again, and its up to Peter to put him back. Deadpool doesn't want Spiderman anywhere near the dangerous symbiote. They're both hiding things from each other, and it becomes harder when feelings begin to mingle with the already impossible situation. No one can know Peter is Spiderman if he doesn't want to lose them. No one is allowed to know who the real Wade is behind his sarcastic demeanor. And Cletus Kasady wants them both dead.or;it started at 3am on a Tuesday morning in a laundromat like all good love stories do.





	1. ACT I

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "sarcastic mister know it all"

    [ _White Box_ ; **Yellow Box** ]

CHAPTER ONE

    Peter was exhausted. He’d been swinging across the skyscrapers of New York all week with no break because somehow Cletus Kasady had escaped his ‘impenetrable security prison’ again. On top of a deranged serial killer set loose on his city, Jameson was trying to insist that Spiderman was teaming up with Carnage for some reason beyond Peter’s understanding. This was resulting in Peter being demanded to photograph them together ‘teaming up’. Not the mention Peter was debating if he would have to list Eddie Brock’s help to take on the symbiote offspring which would create more horrible headlines in the papers. If that wasn’t enough he’d skipped out on going to the lab one day because he got a lead on Carnage that turned up nothing, and instead the little microbiome he’d spent weeks on died. Poor germs.

    To top it all off he was currently standing in just his tight boxers in the laundromat at 3 a.m on a Tuesday morning.

    Peter was exhausted.

    Luckily there was only one person who had come in since he had, and they barely regarded him. Usually he would wear at least pajama pants, but he couldn’t remember the last time he’d washed his clothing. The result was him putting on his last clean pair of boxers and socks while suffering out the wait for fresh smelling clothes.

    Sighing deeply, he sat down on the gross floor of the laundromat in favour of leaning against an unoccupied washing machine. He was so tired it took all that was in him not to pass out on the spot. The only part of his brain that warned him not to allow sleep to overtake him was the voice that told him someone might see his suit. What a way to come out as Spiderman, half naked against a washing machine drooling. Peter could manage another hour of this.

    Just has his head began to lull against his chest again the chime above the door sounded. Peter glanced up tiredly as he heard someone walking through the laundromat whistling some tune - _Starboy_ by the sounds of it. Ignoring them he leaned back against the machine again with heavy eyelids.

    “I’m a motherfuckin’ starboy,” the voice hummed as he rounded the corner and stopped abruptly. “Huh, that isn’t something you see everyday.”

    A vague part of Peter’s drowsy mind recognized the voice. It took all his energy to glance over and see the figure. The man was wearing some loose sweatpants and a red hoodie covered his head. His face was barely visible as he watched Peter. Something about his stance looked familiar.

    “Just ignore me,” Peter waved off. His voice had a clear rasp of sleep to it.

    “You on drugs kid?” the man joked as he took a netted duffle bag filled with clothing and placed it on top of a machine.

    Peter groaned. “That would be much better I’m sure. No, just tired.”

    The man laughed again before beginning to pile his clothing into the machine. The man continued his humming while Peter yawned tiredly. After patrolling he usually went home and crashed before rinse and repeating his everyday routine. His body was angry at him clearly for ignoring its sleep schedule, and Peter vaguely wondered how pissed Jameson would be if he called in sick tomorrow. He could practically hear JJ in his head, ‘ _Get out Parker! You’re fired!’_ making him groan.

Gingerly shaking his pounding head to rid the thought, he rubbed his tired eyes. The man changed tunes beside him to a different pop song Peter remembered hearing in the sandwich shop by his apartment. Peter glanced over again, and his eyes widened as he saw clothing tumble into the washer that clearly were _stained with blood._

    What the fuck.

    His spider senses rang bells in his head as he stumbled to his feet. He barely made it up before he was stumbling backwards. He groaned but kept his eyes on the man who was now looking over at him. Peter’s eyes shot to the clothing to make sure his eyes weren’t deceiving him. Sure enough there was dark red stains that had a faint metallic scent to them. At Peter’s stare the man glanced to his clothing. “Ah! I see!”

    Peter wondered how hard it would be to fight someone half naked, fatigued, and without webshooters. _Probably more comical than anything,_ he thought glumly.

    As he contemplated his next move the man rummaged through the laundry bag. “Calm down kid, they just were pressed against this.” As he said this he held up an unmistakable red and black suit.

Peter could recognize that suit anywhere: Deadpool.

    With wide eyes Peter glanced to the merc who stood before him. Deadpool was the definition of dangerous and crazy with a stream of never ending humour to tie it all together. He was a gun for hire, and the best at that. Spiderman had teamed up with the merc with a mouth on multiple occasions. At first, Peter had hated him. Then, just a few weeks after Peter’s eighteenth birthday while he was being tracked by Hitman - another gun for hire - Deadpool had taken three bullets when Peter’s spider senses didn’t go off in time. Ever since then, Peter held a place of respect for Deadpool. While he was still dangerous, he’d saved the webslinger from a bullet to the head. If it hadn’t been for the older man, Peter would have died. Ever since then they teamed up when it called for it, or would eat take out on top of a roof after a bad day. The Avengers had been angry at Spiderman’s ‘carelessness’ but didn’t really have a say in the matter.

Peter had never seen his face before - minus the times he had seen his chin while they shared the occasional meal together on top of a building. Curiosity was chewing at him, but he reframed. He knew Deadpool was sensitive about his face, and he doubted he’d appreciate a random guy trying to catch a peek.

Getting back to himself, Peter wasn’t sure how that was an explanation at all to any regular bystander.

“How did you get blood all over yourself?” Peter asked carefully. He had to lean his hand on of the machines to keep himself standing.

Deadpool laughed at that. “Well, seeing as you recognize the suit I bet you can guess kid.” Peter was sure the man had winked though his face was shielded.

“You’re trying to stall me so I won’t call the cops.” It wasn’t a question, it was a statement.

The older man hummed at that. “Yeah, I’d rather they didn’t get involved. Spidey would be _pissed_ ,” - _no shit dumbass_ Peter thought - “but it’s okay because I didn’t actually kill anyone! So no need to worry that pretty head of yours.”

Peter couldn’t help the blush that powdered his cheeks. When Deadpool complimented his ass and other features in suit it was easy to brush off. He wasn’t sure what was different, and he really wished he had his mask on.

“Why should I believe you?” Peter retorted as he tried to stand fully on his own. His body felt like dead weight.

Deadpool contemplated that curiously. “Because I wasn’t hired to do the job, I was just being an outstanding Canadian representative or some shit like that.” As he spoke he waved his hands in a flippant matter that clearly showed he was spewing the first thing that came to mind.

Although Peter wanted to demand answers from the merc who _knew_ not to kill while in New York, he stayed silent. He knew he couldn’t start lecturing Deadpool without revealing his identity, plus he was a walking corpse at the moment. Once he was fully rested tomorrow though, Deadpool was going to get his ass handed to him.

“Right,” Peter finally replied. Sighing deeply he sank back to the floor. _Fucking Deadpool_ , Peter cursed.

The man hummed happily at Peter’s lack of a phone call to the cops, not knowing the only reason he didn’t was because Peter didn’t want to start a stand off in a laundromat. He just wanted his warm change of clothes before sinking into bed for a few short hours of sleep. _Sleep_ , Peter thought dreamily.

Sometime passed before Peter felt a nudge on his shoulder jolting him awake from a sleep he didn’t realize he’d fallen into. Immediately his spidey senses went wild, nearly causing him to latch himself onto the ceiling. Luckily he was too tired to even save himself considering it was only the nudge of a gloved hand on his shoulder.

“Hey kid, your laundry has been done a while.”

Peter groaned as he glanced up, but the face of the man that spoke quickly hid itself into his shoulder. What had happened earlier flooded his mind. His eyes widened as he realized how close Deadpool was to him before the merc took a few steps away. “What time is it?” Peter mumbled tiredly as he stood. He wandered to the machine and pulled out a pair of sweatpants along with a random shirt while glancing discreetly at the merc.

“I know, what a weird kid,” Deadpool muttered to himself as he watched Peter quickly dress. The older man grabbed his mask from the dryer to put it back on as he spoke, “It’s 4:13am. Don’t you have like, school to be at tomorrow. Oh shut up I know it’s this morning.” Peter was glad he’d known Deadpool for long enough to know the last statement was not directed at him.

“ _College_ ,” Peter corrected irritably. He wasn’t sure why everyone assumed he was a kid. He wasn’t sixteen anymore.

This made Deadpool snicker at Peter’s defiance. Peter was really beginning to consider webbing him to a wall, but thankfully his web shooters were tucked away in his backpack. He ignored Deadpool in favour of shoving his clothing into his own laundry mesh bag. The movements were sluggish and Peter could feel the mercs eye’s on him.

“You alright there kid? You look like death, and trust me I’ve seen Death. Pretty lady, but man she can be nasty looking too,” the man rambled. “Like when she goes all skull face and shit. You look like that.”

“Thanks,” Peter glowered. His stomach ached and his body was absolutely about to kiss the ground.

Deadpool hummed as he looked over Peter who looked back at him in confusion. “Hey I’m in an exceptionally good Canadian mood. Not to mention I probably should do some less morally ambiguous things to make up for the little warehouse scuffle I had earlier. As an outstanding citizen let me treat you to a bite to eat.”

What the hell was Peter Parker’s life, Peter thought. He must look like a real piece of shit if Deadpool was offering this to some random kid he didn’t know. Maybe he should look in the mirror and see how closely he resembled Death. He also didn’t want to see just how bad he looked if that was the only comparison.

Every part of him told him to reject Deadpool's offer. They had teamed up enough that there was risk of familiarity between Peter and Spiderman. But his stomach protested with the promise of food. Peter sighed to himself, _well screw it, it’s better to have food with a morally ambiguous anti-hero than teaming up with a villain._ He also then reminded himself he was about to do just that if it came down to it.

“You know, why the hell not,” Peter agreed.

With Deadpool not hiding his face anymore after covering it again, Peter could see the whites of the mask widen. Quickly the expression was traded in with a wide grin visible through the red fabric. “Make sure to make a tweet or something about it so Spidey can see I’m a good guy,” he joked.

As Peter followed the anti-hero out of the laundromat he wondered what the fuck he was going to do. Deadpool had unknowing found out his secret identity, and an even worse killer than the merc was running around somewhere above them.

Just another day in the life of the Amazing Spiderman.

 

***

 

    It was now 4:38am and Peter found himself in a random Mexican restaurant that was located a short walk away from the laundromat. Two hard shell tacos sat in front of him along with a can of Pepsi and a churro. Across from them was a mountain of soft and hard shell tacos alongside a masked Deadpool.

    Peter was beginning to wonder if this was a fever dream, and he had in fact fallen asleep while waiting for his clothing in the washing machines.

    “So kiddo, hope you don’t mind me calling you that,” - _yes I do,_ Peter thought dryly - “what has a college kid out at this hour on Tuesday?” Deadpool inquired cheerily as he stuck the straw of his drink under his mask. The obnoxious slurp of the drink sounded over the radio softly playing overhead.

    Peter didn’t know what kind of lie to tell to that. He shrugged. “Nightowl,” he finally replied before taking a bite of his food.

    Deadpool laughed at that - or maybe at something one of the ‘boxes’ he had told Spiderman about said. He noted it was the latter as Deadpool spoke. “You’re right White, some nightowl you are: kid you look like a raccoon. How long have you been grooming those bags under your eyes? Because they look darker than the Winter Soldier’s. Hell, they’re crazier than Billie Joe Armstrong after American Idiot dropped. That my friend is something severe let me tell you.”

    If the merc wasn’t exaggerating Peter _really_ needed some sleep. Preferably a sleep that lasted a century. Maybe two.

    “Very funny,” Peter grumbled. He then thought about the last time he’d gotten a proper sleep. “And I’ve been raising these bad boys for about… whenever my reading week for college was I guess.”

    The white’s of Deadpool’s mask widened comically again. “You college kids are something else let me tell you.”

    “Not a kid,” Peter muttered as he took another bite of his food. The taste was heavenly, heavy in greasy beef. The man hummed in amusement at Peter’s remark. That’s when Peter noticed the untouched wrapped food in front of the merc. “You gunna eat?” he asked in confusion, his brows furrowing together.

    Deadpool waved his hand dismissively. “Don’t want you to vomit up the heaven that is this restaurant.” At that he took another sip from the straw under his mask. “This ugly mug is meant for no one to see. Like ever, preferably. Oh shut up Yellow I thought we were having a good skin day today,” the merc pouted. “Avocado hate fuck is just mean, are you Weasel now?”

    Peter had seen the lower half of Deadpool’s face a handful of times as Spiderman. He knew the skin was scarred and scabbed harshly, but it had barely fazed him the first time he caught a glimpse. Granted, every time the merc had pulled up his mask Peter had sat beside him, and out of courtesy never looked directly at the man.

    “I’m sure I won’t,” Peter insisted. The feeling of pity for the self conscious man formed in his chest.

    Again the dismissive hand appeared. “So, what’s your name kid?”

    A rational portion of his brain suggested to make up a name. An equally rational portion said it would be bad to lie and then get caught lying to the self proclaimed insane man. The part attached to his heart didn’t have it in him to lie about something so simple. There was no way to attach a random kid in a laundromat to Spiderman, especially with how Peter had slipped the suit into his backpack before the merc could see it, just by name.

    “Peter. Peter Parker,” he said as he extended his hand.

    A much larger leather gloved hand shook his own. Peter couldn’t help notice how the man’s hand dwarfed his own. “Wade, Wade Wilson. I’m sure you already knew that. I’m like Ironman - no secret identity really. Well I’m not like the tincan actually, he’s an asshole while I’m a comedian. He’s like Robert Downey Jr. and I’m like Ryan Reynolds.”

    Peter knew the man’s name. Deadpool had shared it during one of their team ups. He had been surprised Spiderman hadn’t already known it, but Peter didn’t like digging around in anyone's files. If he was going to team up with someone he didn’t want to look like an invasive snoop.

    “I don’t understand the comparison, but yeah I’ve heard it around.” Peter took his hand back after a moment, a small tingle in the tips of his fingers from the touch.

    Deadpool - Wade - pursed his lips through the mask. “Peter Parker? I’ve heard that name before somewhere.”

    The rational part of his brain that suggested lying scolded Peter for not listening to it. “I take pictures for uh, Spiderman,” Peter replied as he stumbled over his words. It was weird to talk about himself in the third person sometimes.

    Wade’s eyes widened again, so large Peter was sure they would fall from their sockets. “Oh my god! You’re the one with the intel on Spidey! I’m like you’re biggest fan,” Wade gushed. Peter blushed deeply at that and hid it behind a cough. “I’m a big fan of Spidey you see. He’s the perfect hero, ya know? He’s one of the only heroes who doesn’t try to immediately detain me, too.”

    Peter’s heart sunk at that. While he knew Deadpool was a dangerous man, he was also that, a man. It always irritated him how the Avengers treated Wade. He had helped them more times than Peter could count, but they rarely ever thanked the man in the red and black suit. The only ones who ever thanked him properly were himself, DareDevil, Bucky Barnes, Starlord, Logan, Thor, Hawkeye, and a few anti-heros like Wade. That was a small list compared to the Avengers roster. And the list got even smaller when it came to active team-ups. It was one of many reason’s Peter didn’t bother accepting the Avengers offer to join them.

    “He can be judgmental, but he tries his best not to be,” Peter admitted. He knew when he first encountered Deadpool when he was only seventeen that he’d been extremely mean to the man. As Wade slowly opened up to him, Peter had felt wretched for how he treated him. Yeah, he could be a real jerk sometimes.

    “Spidey’s the best,” Wade concluded while somehow conveying a fond look through the mask.

    Peter’s face flushed again, but he hid it behind the final bites of his tacos. “Thanks for buying me this, by the way. I was having a really shitty day, night whatever it is. Sorry I was rude to you earlier,” he apologized while munching on the churro.

    The man laughed loudly at that, startling Peter. “Trust me kid, that was _nothing_ compared to what I call rude. And hey, now that I know you know Spidey you don't have to tweet. Just casually slip into conversation that you think Deadpool is an outstanding piece of ass. Wait, do you talk to Spidey? You have to, that webhead doesn’t let people just take his pictures,” Wade rambled. “No Yellow I don’t think Spiderman gets him to take his nudes.”

    Peter rolled his eyes at the ass comment and even more so at the nude one. “Yeah, uh, I talk to Spiderman. He tells me where to be and when.”

    Peter watched as Wade packed up the uneaten tacos into a paper bag as he spoke. He felt bad the man hadn’t eaten because he was scared his scars would scare the college kid away. He wanted to tell Wade the scars wouldn’t scare him, but then that could lead to Wade wondering how Peter knew about his skin.

    “Well I better let you sleep kid. Don’t want you to die of sleep deprivation. Did you need an anti-hero escort home? Don’t want your cute butt getting mugged,” Wade digressed.

    Peter blushed again, and he was getting mad at himself for it. _Pull yourself together,_ he scolded. “No, I’ll be fine,” he declined. If Spiderman let himself get mugged from being a little tired it clearly showed he needed to step up his game.

    Wade looked skeptical, but shrugged nonetheless. “Hey, if Spidey tells me his photographer got mugged it ain't on me then. See you later Petey.”

    On his way out the merc ruffled the soft wavy hair on top of Peter’s head while the boy blushed at the nickname. _I hate myself,_ Peter thought in disesteem as he patted the pink from his cheeks once Deadpool was out of site.

 

***

 

    It wasn’t until the next day that the panic of Deadpool meeting Peter Parker set in. The young hero had only gotten two hours of sleep before darting to his morning classes. Somehow he managed to be a corpse on his feet throughout the day - lucky he only had classes until 1pm. When he’d seen his face in the campus bathroom mirror he understood what Wade had meant in his comparison to Death. During a break between classes he called in sick to the Daily Bugle, and was forced to listen to JJ’s threats that he never went through on. “Get me pictures of that web crawler with Carnage pronto Parker!” was the last thing Peter heard before the line had went dead. Later, once he’d gotten home, all hopes of studying were thrown out the window as he passed out on his sofa with his physics book unopened on his coffee table.

    Thirteen hours later he woke up groggily before remembering the events of just under twenty four hours previous. He’d gone through the stages of grief pretty quickly in a rather mixed order, however. First he was angry at himself, then tried to bargain the pros and cons, gotten depressed about his secret identity, accepted the inevitable, and now found himself in denial and isolation.

    Currently he was sitting on the ledge of a building overlooking the city of New York. He was definitely good at isolation.

    He was grateful for meeting Deadpool last night, though. He’d gotten a pretty decent meal that helped him nap dreamlessly before class. Not to mention he hadn’t felt so bad about sleeping so long thanks to Wade insisting it was a good idea to try to get some rest. He did remember that he needed to scold the merc for getting into some warehouse brawl.

    As if on que to try to force Peter back into the acceptance stage, he heard the sound of the rooftop door opening. He already knew by the sound of the heavy footsteps who it was as he collapsed beside the web slinger.

    “Why do you always chose the tallest buildings with _no fucking elevators,_ ” Wade groaned as he huffed in exertion.

    “It’s funny seeing you either be mad about stairs or scaling the building with suction cups,” Peter joked as he stretched out his back. He smirked as the anti-hero heaved a long whine while catching his breath. “Oh also, I was told by my photographer that you decided to get into a fight and wash the evidence away at a laundromat?”

    Deadpool whined again which nearly made Peter burst into laughter. “What a snitch. A cute snitch though, adorable freckles. Have you seen his freckles? Pretty freckles,” Wade said while continuing to pant from his stair climbing. “Holy fuck please stop with the _massive fucking buildings!”_

    Peter’s face burned like hot water. The mask was truly a lifesaver. “For one; there was not that many flights you big baby. Second; please stop calling Parker cute, but thank you for getting him food. Lastly; explain.” His eyes shifted to Wade who was glaring at him for the stair comment.

    Groaning, Wade sat up properly with a huff. “Well, I was minding my own business firstly. I was checking out the dockyards - don’t get your panties in a twist Spidey I was just making sure no Wilson Fisk type deals were going on - when I heard some loud noise in warehouse. Since I’m a nosy bitch I went to check it out. There was some guys yelling about moving around this big metal tube thing. I think there was something inside it that was clearly important. Seemed shady, and I know how much you hate shady.” Wade glanced to Peter to see if he was still following and continued when the webslinger nodded. “Okay so I just go down to see what the fuss is about. Immediately these guys are firing guns at me, so clearly it _was_ shady! Anyways, four of them made off with the tube thing. I caught the one that didn’t get to the van in time and he told me what he knew after a little persuasion,” Wade explained. “I dropped his persuaded _living_ body off on the police stations doorstep.”  

    Peter frowned. “You really go poking your nose into some bad business.”

    “Bad luck,” Wade shrugged nonchalantly. “All he said was that they were transporting dangerous cargo. I’ve been trying to track down the van since this morning after I sent out a description of the wanna be badasses who should have worn masks. How do they not see unnamed heroes everywhere and not think ‘hey maybe a mask would keep us from being caught too!’? You feel me?”

    “Anything come up?” Peter inquired.

    “Oh! Is this gunna be a team up?” Deadpool exclaimed excitedly. “You know how much I love team ups. I get to be pressed all hot and bothered against your back while we swing through the city under the stars. It’s extremely romantic baby boy,” Wade teased with a wink.

    Peter knew the merc could see his eyeroll even though it was covered by his mask. “For one, light pollution equals no stars in the sky doofus.” Wade pouted at that. “Also, did you find anything?”

    Wade sighed with a shake of his head. “Nothing yet. But it was really shady. These guys clearly were scared, Spidey,” he said with a hint of worry in his voice. “It wasn’t loyalty to their boss or something. These dumbasses were _scared_ of whoever hired them. They were especially scared of the tube, with the way they handled it.” There was a thoughtful look that passed over the older man’s masked face.

    Peter grimaced. He really didn’t need any more problems on his hands. With the dire situation of Carnage on a rampage again, there was no room for more. Something tugged on that thought for a moment in his mind, but Peter dismissed it. It was like is spider senses were urging something, but Peter was missing a puzzle piece.

    “Well, even though I know you probably caused some bodily harm to the man I’m glad to know you are following my no-kill policy.” Peter was surprised by the swell of pride for the merc that formed in his chest.

    Wade smiled softly behind the mask. “Anything for you baby boy.”

    “Tell me if you hear anything,” Peter insisted as he stood. Just as he was about to shoot a web he hesitated. “Hey uh, Wade?”

    A frown appeared on Wade’s face at the slight shake in the webslingers voice. “What’s wrong?”

    Hesitantly, Peter chewed on his lip. “Have you ever heard of Carnage?”

    Immediately Wade’s face darkened. It was intimidating to see his face change so swiftly from carefree to deadly. It showed just who Wade could be when he wasn’t controlling himself. “I’ve dealt with him once before, a few years ago. He had a vendetta against me, but it sounds like when he got out he went after a different pursuit, got put back in. I _thought_ S.H.I.E.L.D had it under control?” The dark tone of his voice was so menacing it made Peter’s spider senses flair up.

    “He got out again. I’m not sure how much you know about him, but I need to find him. So if you want to team up long term-” Peter began.

    His spidey senses went off the charts as Wade lunged up and gripped his bicep. The squeeze of Deadpool’s fingers across his arm was brutal. His senses screamed _danger, danger, danger_ repeatedly at the aura emitting from Wade. “Don’t. I don’t want you going after him, ever.”

    Peter narrowed his eyes a little before taking a deep breath. He knew getting offended wouldn’t help the situation. The rage in Deadpool’s features just at the mention of Cletus Kasady was terrifying. He didn’t need to risk Wade having an episode. “I’ve dealt with him before Wade. A few times too many might I add. He’s in New York for a reason.” Peter placed a hand over Wade’s grip on him. It seemed to startle the merc out of his anger, and he quickly loosened his grip.

    “Sorry baby boy,” Deadpool apologized as he took his hand off Spiderman. “Just… I only had to deal with the freak once, and what he did…” There was a far off look that conveyed through the whites of his mask. “Symbiotes aren’t something to mess with. Why aren’t the Avengers involved?”

    Peter shrugged defeatedly. “They’re so engrossed in the Infinity Stones they are ignoring everything else. They don’t see Carnage as the threat he is. God, if only they would just _pay attention_ they’d see that. But no, instead they lecture a teenager for teaming up with a villain to take down the _murderer_ before he killed everyone.” The bitterness and anger he felt laced through his voice like poison. Taking a calming breath he relaxed himself.

“What do you mean?” Wade asked, confusion and clear worry in his tone.

Peter shook his head once quickly. “It’s nothing. If you hear anything on the warehouse incident tell me. If you hear anything on Carnage, and I mean _anything_ contact me immediately.” Before Wade could retort Peter shot a web out. “Later Wade,” he called over his shoulder as he swung off into the night.

 

***

 

    _Spiderman is hiding something about Carnage_.

    Wade listened to the boxes as they debated the conversation he had just had with the little spider. The worry in Whites tone was evident. The worry that shook Wade to his core was even more so with the way he fiddled with one of his knives dangerously.

    **What did he mean about the tinman and captain mother hen lecturing him? Did Spidey really team up with a bad guy?**

Blood poured from Wade’s hand as he clenched the blade in anger. “Sometimes those Avengers make me want to-” Wade stopped himself. Sighing irritably he removed the knife from its imbedded slot in his hand. The skin quickly began to mend back together like thread.

    _At least we know Carnage is out. I’m surprised we haven’t heard anything yet, granted this idiot didn’t pay the cable bill this month._

    Wade ignored the two voices as he got up and looked about the city. It was very much alive in the darkness of the night. Not to mention it was large, and if it was anything like last time Cletus shitstain Kasady went on a rampage he might not even be in New York. Wade also knew it wouldn’t be as easy to track him this time around. The serial killer had been locked up for a while which may have given him enough time to figure out how to change his ‘crazy wavelength’ channel. It would make it harder to track him, but Wade would be relieved to be as dissimilar to the psychopath as possible.

    **You’re a psychopath too,** Yellow practically sang.

    “I don’t kill kids,” Wade spat harshly. “Or anyone who’s innocent. I’m a psychopath who kills criminals. Aka, I kill cousin kissing Cletus.”

    _That joke is old, like 2014 old,_ White muttered.

    “So long as rednecks are still kissing their cousins I’m not behind in the joke department,” Wade retorted. He was glad he was easing back into his humour. A wave of embarrassment flooded him when he realized how he’d snapped in front of Spiderman.

    **Hey, even if you’ve wrecked it with the love of our lives, you still have that cute Peter kid.**

_Oh, you mean the one who would vomit when he saw our face? Yeah we still have that in the back pocket,_ White deadpanned.

    “You know I would really appreciate if you both shut the fuck up,” Wade said irritably while estimating how far the drop was. It was pretty fucking far.

    **Superhero landing!**

Yellow giggled excitedly as Wade dropped down to begin his hunt for Carnage.

 

***

 

    “I heard about Kasady.”

    Peter looked up in surprise before relaxing as Mary Jane slid into the seat across from him. He was currently in a coffee shop near their campus that he and MJ frequented. It was the day after the meeting with Wade on the rooftop and their discussion about Carnage. MJ and Peter always tried to find time at least once a week to meet up for coffee between classes and work. The shop was empty other than two other tables focusing on their phones or conversations. Peter could smell fresh brewing coffee as well as lemon bread in the air that wafted from the back. Sunrays shone through the window beside him that warmed his skin as he drank his iced latte.

Peter glanced at Mary Jane as he took a sip of his drink. Her hair was bunched into their usual fire red curls that framed her face. Usually she dressed up to attend classes, but clearly she was exhausted from rehearsal for her current role in her theatre production. Instead of her usual professional attire she was wearing baggy sweatpants and an old band t shirt that had been washed a few too many times.

“Wish I heard something about him,” Peter sighed while rubbing his eyes.

Mary Jane sent him a soft sympathetic look that also clearly portrayed worry. “Do you have any leads?”

Another sigh emitted from Peter’s chest. “No, he’s up and vanished. I don’t understand what he’s planning, but if he’s being this calculated I’m nervous. Usually he just goes on… _sprees,_ but this time it’s different.”

MJ knew all about Peter’s secret life as Spiderman. They’d dated for a time before breaking it off on friendly terms. He didn’t want her to get hurt being close to him, and she didn’t mind not being occasionally kidnapped. They had stayed close friends since they still loved each other even if it grew from romantic to platonic. She’d been there through it all, and she’d been there as a shoulder to cry on a year after Gwen’s death. Not to mention he didn’t think he’d ever be able to separate her and Aunt May’s close friendship.

MJ frowned at this. “Peter you won't.”

Peter chewed his lip as he looked down at his coffee.

“Peter, stay away from Eddie Brock.” MJ’s tone was firm as if she was scolding a child for drawing on the walls.

“Look, MJ, how else am I supposed to beat him?” Peter asked, exasperated. “You know no one else will help me with this, or they’re all too busy to.”

The redhead expelled a long exhale before looking up. “Pete, it’s just not worth it. Why don't you ask the Fantastic Four? They helped before,” she suggested.

Peter quirked a brow. “Actually Venom helped, the others showed up last minute.”

At his defiance MJ tossed her hands in the air before falling back into the armchair. With sharp eyes she quickly snatched Peter’s latte and took a sip. “I’m going to kick your ass, sticky fingers be damned.”

A small laugh raised from his chest before he pursed his lips.  “I’ll try to figure something out…” Peter’s mind drifted to the night previous. “Deadpool knows something about Carnage. From how he reacted at me mentioning him I’m assuming Deadpool knows Kasady isn’t just some villain who isn’t worth mentioning.” His fingers absentmindedly rubbed his bicep were Wade had bruised him the night before. The marks were faded to yellow now, but had been an angry purple when he went to sleep.

MJ groaned loudly. “What is it with you and teaming up with people who kill people?”

“Wade isn’t like them,” Peter retorted angrily. MJ’s eyes widened as did Peter’s before he blushed fiercely. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to snap like that.” He looked away with red burning his ears while he covered his mouth with his hand. _Why did I just do that?_

Slowly a smirk worked its way onto Mary Jane’s face. “First name basis, huh?”

“Can we drop it, please?” Peter begged as he further buried himself into his hands. “And no, it’s not. He doesn’t know who I am.”

MJ quirked a brow. “You want me to drop the fact you're blushing over someone for the first time in what, two years?” She tutted at Peter’s silence. “Are you seriously blushing over a _merc_?”

“He’s not just a merc,” Peter began but stopped when he saw MJ’s smile widen further. Turning away he glared at his reflection in the window. “Were you not just mad at me for teaming up with bad guys?”

At that MJ shrugged. “While I don’t support Deadpool’s way of dealing with villains, I wouldn’t call him a bad guy I guess.”

A swell of pride burned in Peter’s chest again for the red clad merc. “I’m glad to hear that. He doesn’t kill people as often anymore, and never in New York after I begged him not to.”

Peter could still remember that. It happened two years ago, a year after everything that happened with Gwen and Harry. They had been teaming up to take down a drug ring in Queens. Thanks to Wade they had found the location they were hiding in. As they jumped into the large warehouse Wade had elbowed a man who had tried to stab him in the lower back with a knife. The man went tumbling over the railing and just seeing a body falling so far down made Peter’s body go rigid in fear. All his memories of Gwen resurfaced in an instant. Wade had to take down the entire group because Peter had ended up curled in on himself near the railing looking at the dead body and only seeing Gwen. Luckily the merc had shared his fair share of similar panics and calmed Peter down enough to heard him choke, “I don’t anyone else to die because of me”. After that Wade never killed in front of Peter, and Peter had only heard of a few missteps Wade had made. At the time he’d hated how Deadpool had seen him so weak, but now he was glad to have had someone who didn’t even need to know to understand.

“Now that you say that, I guess I haven’t heard of him shish kebabing people recently.” MJ looked up at Peter who was still thinking about Wade’s silent pact back in that warehouse. “He must really love you to stop killing for you,” she noted.

That gained Peter’s attention. He turned to her wided eyed, nearly choking. “Deadpool? Loving me?” Peter couldn’t believe his own ears. “What are you talking about? Not to mention he’s _insane_ ,” he rambled while a blush coated his cheeks.

MJ frowned. “Isn’t that a logical explanation?”

“You’re crazier than he is,” Peter scoffed.

MJ rolled her eyes before changing the subject to something else. As she spoke Peter’s eyes drifted to the window. He could see the disheveled appearance he was in windows reflection with that stupid blush coating his cheeks like paint. He couldn’t stop the rapid beating of his heart at the thought. _Deadpool loving me? No way, right?_

 

***

 

    _You’re so in love with Spidey it’s embarrassing,_ White groaned as Wade looked at the latest issue of the Daily Bugle.

    He was currently sitting on his worn sofa that smelled faintly of cigarettes from its previous owner. The TV was set to a low hum of Golden Girls while he sat near the window to be warmed by the sun. The smell of spicy curry filled the apartment as Wade ate some take out he’d gotten earlier that afternoon. He was currently smiling at the picture of Spiderman swinging towards the camera, eyes turned to the left away from the lense. Wade didn’t miss the clear smirk under the mask.

    **It’s not embarrassing so long as we don’t pump one off to it!** Yellow insisted. **That headline is brutal though! We should unalive Jameson for that!**

Wade’s eyes narrowed again as he reread the title: _Spiderman teams up with Carnage?!_

“Can you please shut up?” Wade snapped as he folded the paper so the headline was out of sight. The rage at the mere mention of Carnage’s name was making his blood boil. “We both know that headline is bullshit.”

    _Even if it is bullshit, it still remains a mystery as to why Spiderman is so secretive about Carnage. And asking you of all people? He must be desperate._

    Wade didn’t argue that. Something wasn’t right about this situation. For one, he was pissed that Cletus was out again. Second, the thought of Spidey going head to head with the serial killer made him sick with worry. Cletus Kasady was too revolting to be allowed to breathe the same air as the little spider.  

    “We should check the Hellhouse, see if Weasel as heard anything,” Wade voiced as he stood up excitedly. “I’m going to tear that southern motherfucker limb from limb until the symbiote can't heal him anymore.”

    **You know that’s what everyone says about us but we just keep coming back like a persistent case of lice, right?**

_Yellow’s right you dumbass._

Wade waved his hand with a scowl. “We are on a different level than cousin kissing Cletus. We’re like cockroaches because who doesn’t want to have cock associated with them?” he rambled while wandering into his room to put on his suit.

    _Sounds like you’re trying to make up for something,_ White snorted while Yellow laughed maniacally.

    Ignoring them he put on his suit before heading out of the apartment.

 

***

 

    The white van pulled up to an abandoned warehouse deep within Hunts Point. It was approaching late evening. They had driven all night around New York after the terrifying experience of running into the infamous Deadpool. Once the day had passed with them camping out in a warehouse in Queens they decided they had gotten away for the time being. Now that they stood outside a towering building that was eroding with neglected they found themselves wishing they had been caught earlier alongside their accomplice. The men inside the vehicle looked around nervously as they quickly piled out, and began to carefully maneuver the heavy metal cylinder. It was about two and a half meters tall and had a radius of half a meter. The men slid it out delicately as if it held an infant.

    “Quickly, get it inside,” one of the men ordered as he slammed the backdoors of the van. “Drop it off with whoever’s waiting, and then get the fuck back to the car. I’m leaving in no later than ten minutes,” the man warned as he locked himself in the driver seat.

    The men swallowed nervously before quickly carting the container into the building. They maneuvered through the rundown building. Inside it was damp while smelling like a mixture of piss and mold. One of the men made his way to a broken elevator shaft while a chill ran down his spine.

    “The instructions were to take it to the basement storage area,” the man murmured. With a flare of anger he looked around while the sweat of fear released some his greased hair. “How the fuck are we supposed to get it down there?”

    “Should we just drop it down?” one of the men suggested. He was the youngest of the bunch - barely breaching twenty - and clearly regretted taking the job offer.

    “Are you fucking stupid?” the man snarled. “Do you know who we’re dealing with? He’d kill us in an instant.”

While the men bickered and contemplated what their next move was, the cylinder let off a small noise of release. The one man who hadn’t spoken up noticed the noise. With jerky movements he slowly turned his head to the metal capsule.

    “What the f-”

    An array of red tendrils filled the men’s vision as the cylinder exploded open. There was a scream in the air as blood splattered like warm syrup against the dew soaked walls. The youngest of the three darted into the safety of the broken elevator, and watched in mute horror as he saw the torn chest of one of his companions who lied limp on the ground. His eyes darted to the burly man being held in the tendrils that looked like red ivy. The man’s greased hair was in a disarray across his sweat soaked forehead as he begged for mercy.

    “I think you kept me in time out a little longer than you should have, don’t you think?”

    The younger man’s eyes darted to the source of the voice that sounded like saw blades against metal. His jaw dropped in horror as he saw what appeared to be a man trapped head to two in a red substance that moved and molded on command. A horrific smile spread across his face that flashed an array of blade like weapons for teeth.

    The man in his grips screamed maniacally as he struggled against the hold the creature had on him. “You weren’t supposed to be released yet!” he screamed in the most terrible form of fear the young man had ever heard.

    “Well I couldn’t just trust you to leave me be to open for a timer, I’m a wanted man,” the red figure chuckled darkly. A thoughtful looked came across his visage before it twisted into that of horrific amusement. “And you know, I’m also a hungry man. I’ve never pulled a Hannibal Lecter before - unless you count those aliens that one time.”

    The man didn’t even have a chance to scream as one of the creature's arms morphed into a meat cleaver before it moved at a bone crushing speed.

    “If I leave here tomorrow would you still remember me?” the figure sang in its grinding voice as it’s arm morphed back into a regular hand. The lyrics were emphasized by the wet thunk of the mangled body as it hit the ground.  

    The young man hidden in the elevator shook in horror as tears gathered in his eyes at what he had just witnessed.

    “For I must be traveling on now,” it continued to sing as it discreetly moved closer to the shaft. The young man let out a blood curdling scream as he was restrained by the red tendrils that encompassed him. The mouth of the creature split into its terrifying grin as something akin to a fencing sword overtook its arm. It poised right before his eye. “'Cause there's too many places I've got to _see._ ”

    The swaying feet of the dead body moved with the breeze that swept into the building. Sighing in boredom, the symbiote dropped the young man’s corpse to the ground.

    “Well weren’t they all a bunch of idiots,” he sighed dramatically as he wandered close to the entrance. His eyes wandered over the area before resting on the white van perched a few meters away from the building. “And there’s boss idiot,” he sang dangerously as he maneuvered towards the van.

Once that business was dealt with he took residence on top of the five story building. The symbiote urged to begin their mission, but the man quieted it. “Calm down girl, we got plenty of time. Let Spiderman unhinge sweetheart. Throw a murder spree here and there, and he’ll be going insane!”

The symbiote shook in excitement at that.

    “Maybe he’ll even recruite daddy dearest again! Kill two birds with one stone,” he hummed merrily.

    Giddily he stood, and his teeth gleamed in the setting rays of the sun as he shouted out into the streets,

    “Good morning New York! It’s your ever-lovin; totally unfriendly neighborhood Carnage!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Deadpool is 30 and Peter is 22  
> I write from the view of Earth 616 mainly, mostly avoiding MCU (Earch 1999 I think it is) other than a few minor references.  
> (yes I know the last part was at sunset, I wanted to make a good morning vietnam reference sue me)  
> (I know Hellhouse is in Chicago but let’s say fuck it for plot?)  
> (I’m ignoring the Axis Carnage plot line because there are so many fucking plot lines i'm incorporating already and adding that would make writing this way more fucking confusing. I also am ignoring Return because holy shit it’s too much to add all these man, like even reading them and figuring out what the hell is going on is hard enough. Gotta love Marvel and their timelines. This pretty much takes place after the Toxin plot line where Venom and Spiderman team up again and Carnage is locked up. The Deadpool timeline is hard to pin point but I’m pulling it from Deadpool vs Carnage and ignoring Axis because that involves bringing in the xmen and a shit ton of timeline confusion)  
> (I'm Canadian so just as a preface I'm using the metric system and my 'u' (ie. colour, honour, ect))  
> (I’m obviously pulling stuff from canon but this is also a fic where deadpool and spiderman have anal sex so really don't blame me for diverging from canon or forgetting something from their respective plot lines)
> 
> This is also my first Spideypool fic so please be gentle with your criticism I'm trying very hard. They've been my favourite superhero and antihero since before I hit double digits.  
> Please let me know what you think down below!


	2. ACT II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wade's working hard to track down the missing van while worrying over Carnage. Peter is beginning to fall apart from the stress of the Symbiote. They're both being faced with truths they don't want to fight against on top of it all. 
> 
> (there is quiet a lot of jumping around between POV, this chapter is supposed to take place over a 2-3 week period so that's why)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "fallin' all over myself to lick your heart and taste your health"

****

 

CHAPTER TWO

 

The stench of the bounty bar filled Wade’s nostrils. The room hung heavy with the mixed scent of cigarette smoke, booze, and wet cement. Pool balls clinked against one another while mingling with the conversations that hung in the air. A young woman with thick arms leaned over one of the rough wooden tables, and smiled flirtatiously at another woman who was quirking her brow in amusement. The bar was dense with clouds of smoke and sweat from the other patrons. 

“Hey Wade,” came the greetings from a few of the men. 

“Hey boys,” Wade replied with a grin. He didn’t like being overly flashy in the bar so he hid his suit under a hoodie, but regardless he was unmistakable. The hoodie didn’t create must discretion but it was less over the top. It made a part of Wade believe Weapon X never happened when no one batted an eye at his attire. 

A few more people greeted Wade as he wandered inside. Most of the men gathered near the pool table or their own seats throughout the bar, and didn’t pay much attention to the new body in the room. 

Wade’s eyes wandered across the bar looking for a specific set of glasses he’d recognize anywhere. Behind the bar a man, who clearly played the part of a stereotypical stoner, poured a beer before passing it to a customer. Even from across the bar Wade could see the splash of beer foam on his lenses. 

_ Bingo. _

“Howdy Weasel,” Wade snickered as he slid into a seat at the bar. Gently he pulled his mask from his head, but kept his face hidden in the hood of his jacket. 

Said man groaned with an eye roll. “Howdy? Really Wade?” Weasel scoffed while grabbing a beer bottle from the fridge. “And do you know how expensive these are to get imported over the border? It’s bullshit,” he complained as Wade snagged the bottle of Molson Canadian extended to him. 

“Shut up shit stain,” Wade retorted before taking a swig. “And I’m saying  _ Howdy  _ for a reason. It’s a theme,” he elaborated poorly. 

Weasel furrowed his brows in confusion. The rodent named man was one of the closest things Wade could consider as a friend. While they’d had their fair share of problems -  _ intense problems depending on the comic string  _ White commented - they managed to work as partners multiple times. Well, partners wasn’t the correct term since Weasel practically shit himself whenever he got scared. It was more like he helped with the information gathering. 

**Kind of like a shitty P.I. No Jessica Jones, that’s for sure, unless Weasel has a hot beefy boyfriend he hasn’t told us about.**

_ Please, Weasel is still obsessed over that dead girl from Oscorp or whatever- _

“A plot line for another time,” Wade said. 

Weasel just rolled his eyes at his friends inner monologue. “Anyways, I don’t have any southern targets at the moment.” Weasel pursed his lips as he glanced at the job cards over his shoulder. 

“It’s not like that,” Wade cut in as he shook his head. His eyes narrowed as his mind flashed to his real target. Glancing around, Wade leaned in closer to Weasel. At the movement, Weasel also lowered his head with a serious look on his face. “Do you remembered a certain Cletus Kasady?” 

Weasel jumped at the name, and looked to his friend wide eyed. “Wade, what kind of pile of shit are you sitting in right now?” 

“I’m sitting on a throne of different shits,” Wade retorted. Sitting back he rolled his tense shoulders, his body aching. The stress of the symbiote had led to an aggressive fight with the super cancer in his every cell.  _ Now _ he looked like a hate fucked avocado. “So, have you heard anything?” 

Weasel let out a long sigh. “Nothing more than what’s on the news. He’s gone incognito since his escape other than a few bodies showing up.” With a heavy look, he pulled out his own bottle of beer from behind the counter. “This shit is too much this early in the morning.” He groaned while popping off the bottle top. 

“It’s two in afternoon,” Wade sing songed as he took a swig of his drink. 

“Fuck off,” Weasel muttered while doing the same. He made a face at the beer in his hand. “This shit tastes like piss.” 

Wade gasped in mock horror at the statement. “I’ll have you know this is the beer of my people, a national treasure!” 

“Shut up Wade,” Weasel said with an eyeroll. “While I don't have any good news on the Trump supporter,  I do have some on the white van you asked about the other day.” 

At that Wade perked up. He’d nearly forgotten about the van incident after the mention of the symbiote. A part of him wanted to forget about the incident for now and focus solely on Carnage, but if no one had heard anything there wasn’t much Wade could do. He also didn’t want to let Spidey down. He knew helping with the fight in the warehouse would at least make the spider smile, even if Wade couldn't see it. 

“What did you find?” Wade inquired while finishing off his beer. 

“Not much,” he admitted with a shrug. “But the van was spotted in Hunts Point, so it’s not in Hell’s Kitchen anymore. The only guy in custody has been trying to contact his companions, but they’ve gone silent. I’ve heard that from two sources at the precinct he’s at.” Weasel rattled off the information while Wade digested it. 

“Or they’ve been  _ made  _ silent,” Wade mumbled to himself. 

**Employer shot em up? Sounds right, they were about to shit their pants before we found them,** Yellow recalled. 

_ I actually agree with the two of you.  _ White sounded thoughtful. 

“You agreeing with me? There’s something you don’t see everyday.” 

Weasel looked perplexed at Wade’s comment. “You need to stop talking to yourself man. This is why you can’t get laid,” he said while sliding another beer to his bar patron. 

That made Wade scowl. “Sure, it’s the talking, not the literal pizza face worse than a sixteen year old pubescent kid.” 

**Pepperoni pizza with pineapples.**

“Pineapples are disgusting on pizza,” Wade stated. 

**Exactly.**

Another long sigh escaped Weasel. “Well, the talking isn’t doing you any favours. Regardless, what are you going to do if you find Kasady? Shooting him or slicing off his head won't do anything other than going all Queen of Hearts on the sidewalk shrubbery. Putting him in prison just puts you back at square one for when he escapes again,” Weasel rattled on knowingly. “The guys just as annoying as you are.”

A pout formed on Wade's lips as he debated what Weasel told him. “I could tie him to a cement brick before tossing him into the Hudson’s Bay, or something. Then he’d be constantly drowning, and no longer a problem!” The thought made Wade giddy with excitement. 

“For starters, how the hell would you get him over the Canadian border? Another, if he escapes you’ve just let him loose on Canada with no knowing when he’s escaped until bodies turn up.” Weasel smirked at his friend’s baffled look. 

Wade’s lips turned down as he thought over the words. “I could shoot him back into space where he came from,” he countered. 

_ Do you not remember a plot line where that failed miserably- _

“Oh shut up, I’m trying here,” Wade scowled. 

**Plus we chose to ignore that comic string! So we can do it, fail later, being none-the-wiser!**

_ Except we are none-the-wiser you dumb piece of- _

“Okay space doesn’t work, you don’t have to tell me greasy stoner.” Wade sighed as Weasel rolled his eyes for a millionth time. 

“My suggestion is find him and detain him till you get a better idea. No point in letting him go Ted Bundy on the country for the time being.” At that Weasel pulled out two shot glasses before grabbing a hard liquor from the display behind him. 

“He’s more of a Andrei Chikatilo in my opinion,” Wade suggested before polishing off his beer in a fluid motion. 

“And you look like one of his murder victims.” Weasel faked gagged at Wade’s exposed face. 

“You’re the sweetest friend a guy like me could ask for,” Wade cooed softly while batting his eyes. He’s sure it would come off far better if he actually had eyelashes. 

As Wade debated over if he should wear falsies or not, Weasel placed shots in front of the two of them. The liquor was a deep warm brown that Wade couldn’t help notice matched the eyes of the boy from the other night. He vaguely wondered how the kid was doing. 

Disrupting Wade’s train of thought, Weasel held up one of the shot glasses. “To your bullshit healing factor and your bullshit idea to test its limits.” 

With a smirk, the merc grabbed the second glass before nodding to Weasel as they downed the liquor. While he metabolized far too quickly to get drunk, the stinging bitter taste still relaxed his muscles like it had years before. His mind flashed to the times Vanessa and himself had shared a bottle of hard liquid between the two. They’d passed it back and forth while giggling like drunken idiots. 

**Why are you getting all depressed because of alcohol?! It doesn’t even have an affect on you!**

_ Dead ex-girlfriends do though,  _ White reminded. 

Wade ignored the two voices as he pushed the empty shot to his friend. “I better head out and find that van. Contact me if you hear anything on the southern motherfucker,” Wade ordered as he stood. 

Weasel sighed in exasperation as Wade once again left without paying. In a final chide against Wade, the barkeep called after the disappearing merc. “Please stop facetiming me in the middle of the night, if I wanted to see ball skin wrapped around a human face I’d google fetish porn!” 

 

***

 

Deadpool frowned as he leaned back against the rooftop surface. The sky above was muggy and thick with oncoming rain. Cars below blew horns while others squeaked their worn tires. He could smell the dense air, and, even though the cancerous air couldn’t kill him any longer, he still craved the fresh smell from his younger days. Well, either fresh air or freshly fired pistols. Both were nostalgic. 

**Weasel’s thought of some good zingers, we got to keep up with him. Think you idiot! We’re being out sarcasmed!** Yellow wailed in horror. 

_ Rather than that, we should focus on Kasady  _ White suggested. 

Wade’s mind drifted to the symbiote. All his mangled brain could form was the image of that Spiderman plushie bathing in all that blood. He squeezed his eyes shut while inhaling a calming breath. That kid couldn’t have been  more than ten years old. 

A shiver ran through Wade’s body.  _ Not on the same wavelength, not on the same wavelength, not on the same wavelength… _

__ Wade knew in the back of his mind that he was having another mental breakdown. The reminder of Vanessa, the memories of his interaction with Carnage, the symbolism that Spiderman doll could mean now, it all caused Wade to lose his sense of stability. 

Before the voices could continue to fill the already overflowing insanity of his mind, Wade whipped out his pistol.

 

***

 

After a portion of an hour passed with silence and a nice cup of tea with Death, Wade found himself studying every detail of Hunts Point. The voices would comment every so often, but were still subdued from the bullet that had been lodged in his brain matter shortly before. It helped the merc concentrate as he wandered past every warehouse. 

Weasel had texted him the exact building address the van had last been seen passing, but it had left long before the anti-hero arrived on its journey. The little knowledge he had pointed him in the direction towards the harbour area. As it had drifted into evening, some people glanced at him as he walked by while others scurried away quickly. While a few years ago it would have reminded him of a time people did so while he was unmasked, he’d now grown to ignore the painful memories. 

After a quick stop at a convenience store, Wade sipped on his slurpee as he debated where to go. Since he knew the general direction of the trajectory he continued to follow it. There wasn’t much else for leads. 

_ Might bring up something,  _ White prompted. 

Agreeing with the voice, Wade wandered. 

A while later, as some rays of the late evening sun stone through the clouds, Wade rounded a corner and noticed a woman on her phone. She was holding a few bags of groceries and seemed to be shaking angrily. 

“I swear to god, you’re such a fucking asshole!” The woman exclaimed with an irritated tone to her voice as she frowned at her phone. Deadpool noticed she had the same slope to her nose and high eyebrows as Anastasia. 

**This chapter is pretty much a depressing shoutout to all the people who’ve died around you.**

_ There’s only been two mentioned,  _ White chided as Wade whistled awkwardly while maneuvering around the woman. He tried not to notice how she wore the same shade of lipstick too. 

**More to come, adds character,** Yellow explained as if the voice knew everything.  **Oh, also, remember when she tried to bury you alive? Then you killed her?**

“I’m tuning you out right now, you’re ruining my mood again,” Wade muttered. A few people glanced at him oddly as he talked to himself. 

He took a sip of his drink from under his mask. He tried not to remember the last image he had of her, a woman who had meant so much to him, only to stab him in the back. This was one hell of a trip down memory lane with detours of mental stability. 

Somehow he always left a trail of bodies behind him that he had cared about in one way or another. 

As he walked, Wade saw the waters of the harbour at the end of the street. He wondered how long his lungs would sting before they took in water. Death wouldn’t be impressed if he showed up soaking wet to her doorstep while his body floated around the harbour in risk of being sliced up by a boat motor. 

As he approached a parking lot near the harbour - still sipping on the sugary frozen soft drink - the whites of his eyes widened as he was snapped out of his self pity party. 

**A white van!**

Sure enough a white van sat quietly in a lot. The cement of the lot was cracked, and exposed yellow grasses. It was obvious the van had been perched there for awhile. While the street was slightly damp from the light showers from that morning, the underside of the car was bone dry. Suddenly, the streets felt eerily quiet for the city of New York. Through the window, Wade saw the silhouette of a person. 

_ There’s hundreds of white vans in New York,  _ White muttered.  _ Don’t get your hopes up dumbasses.  _

__ **Spidey’s gunna be so proud of us! We should become Private Investigators!** Yellow said excitedly. 

The idea made Wade’s heart flutter, but he also knew White was right. However, he wasn’t going to continue until he confirmed it wasn’t in fact the van he was looking for. It seemed too conveniently placed for Wade’s liking. 

Carefully, Wade crossed the lot to approach the vehicle. A few seagulls flew overhead while two teenagers walked down the quiet street. Wade neared the car to only be greeted by a foul stench flowing from the van. The voices remained quiet while Wade glanced inside. 

“Oh fuck,” he hissed. His drink toppled from his hands as he used one hand to cover his scent glands while the other was prying the door open. Immediately he was bombarded by a more disgusting smell than what filled his nostrils after he woke up from dying. 

Four lifeless bodies filled the hot van that had been baking in the humid climate. The kid in the passenger seat had a hole through his eye that went all the way through his skull. The driver had bruising around his neck while his tongue had been partially torn out. The two men in the back looked like they’d been crushed by a meat cleaver. The sight even made Wade wince as he looked in surprise to see their torn limbs duck taped together in a sadistic manner. 

_ Well… wasn’t expecting this. _

__ “We can’t leave it here,” Wade said with a hard voice as he closed the door harshly. 

**We should tell Spidey-**

“I don’t want him seeing this,” Wade interrupted. 

**But he told you to-**

“Shut up!” Wade snarled. He looked back to the van before running his hands over his face. “Fuck!” Wade snapped as he kicked the car so harshly he felt toes break. 

_ You knew they’d probably be dead, dumbass.  _

__ Wade still felt like shit. He had wanted to help. He wanted to find them and demand answers. He didn’t want to find them already dead while their killer was out there. He didn’t want to disappoint the webslinger. 

Sighing in frustration, Wade pulled out his phone to make a few calls to relocate the vehicle to one of the warehouses he used. As he did so, he glanced around to the surrounding buildings. He watched one that appeared extremely worn down. It looked out over the water with shattered windows. It wasn’t far from the spot he stood, just a hundred or so meters. Nothing appeared out of the ordinary, but he didn’t like the feeling that surfaced in the pit of his stomach while looking at the abandoned building. 

Wade shook his head quickly. The building wasn’t going anywhere, while the van was at risk of being taken as evidence by the police. 

Once hanging up after the confirmation of relocation, Wade leaned back against the foul van. He’d tell Spidey about it once he figured out more about what was going on. Hopefully he’d find the employer who’d killed them before getting the other man involved. He’d make sure to clean out the van of the men's bodies before Spiderman ever saw it. 

_ Remember the last time you started to care about someone,  _ White warned. 

**They either die or leave you,** Yellow reminded.  **You remember Siryn** **_rejecting you?_ ** **Sure she said it was because of other things, but remember how she looked at you when she saw your** **_face_ ** _ - _

Without a second thought Wade threw himself into the harbour. Just as he had figured, Death was not pleased.  

 

***

  
  


It had been a week since Peter first saw Deadpool in the laundromat. During that week Peter had patrolled till he nearly collapsed. The anxiety and urgency to find Carnage was destroying him mentally. His body craved to rest, and showed this with every shake of his legs when he landed or how he could barely keep his strained arms from not dropping him ten stories high. Peter felt as if he was going crazy with worry. 

Jameson had nearly fired him the day previous when he still failed to produce pictures of himself with Carnage. Peter tried to insist Spiderman wasn’t teaming up with the villain, but Jameson didn’t care what Peter thought. The young man had woken up to a nasty article in the paper about how Spiderman was patrolling more frequently to assure Carnage wouldn’t be caught by the police task force. Peter wasn’t the kind of person who found himself crying frequently, but the paper had made him sob into his sofa cushions until his head hurt. 

Yawning in exhaustion, Peter loaded his clothing into the washing machine. 

He found himself once again on a Tuesday at an unreasonable hour in the laundromat. He’d finished patrolling after stopping a robbery at gunpoint and had caught a man breaking into a car. After his patrol he was quickly grabbing his laundry bag and heading to the laundromat. This time, however, he was wearing sweatpants and a shirt that smelt clean. Aunt May would have a heart attack if she saw Peter’s current state of living. 

Wobbly, he sat himself on an unused laundry machine against one of the walls. 

He hadn’t heard from Deadpool since their tense conversation on that rooftop last week. To his dismay, his mind had drifted to the merc more times than he’d like to admit. He was worried though, even though he knew Deadpool couldn’t die. Even if a man couldn’t die, he could still be hurt. From the little the man had shared about the program known as Weapon X, the college student knew that torture could be worse than death. 

“Where are you Wade,” Peter mumbled as he glanced at his Spiderman phone. It was an old simple flip phone that held the contacts of the Avengers and anyone he’d teamed up with. He’d had the mercs number for years now, but never once had used it. Wade hadn’t either, other than randomly sending emojis that just came up as blank boxes due to the age of the phone. Peter was sure some of them had been eggplants or peaches due to their timestamps after certain missions. 

Just before Peter could work up the courage to press the call button, the chime above the doorway rang. Peter fumbled with the phone as he saw none other than the bulky frame of a familiar man enter the build, carrying a bag of dirty clothing that  _ clearly  _ contained blood. 

The merc glanced up - his face hidden behind a floral ball cap - and Peter noticed his face change from frustrated to surprised. “Petey pie?” the man cooed as he tilted his head. Peter could hear in his tone that his lips were turning up into a large smile. 

“Wade,” Peter greeted with a small stumble to his words. There was a flush to his own cheeks, but Peter barely acknowledged it as relief flooded through his veins. “You’re okay,” he said as he slid off the machine. His feet wobbled a bit as he landed. 

“Course I am!” Wade laughed as he began unloading some of his red fabric. “Did you not do any homework about me? Can’t die, kid,” Wade said before sliding the laundry bag in with the rest. He hit  _ start  _ while noticing the boy teeter on his feet slightly. 

Peter frowned slightly. “Doesn’t mean you can’t get hurt.” It made Peter upset to think that Deadpool didn’t feel the need for people to worry over him just because he couldn’t die.

“Why were you worried about me anyways?” Deadpool inquired as he turned to face the younger man. He kept his neck tilted to keep his face hidden.

That made Peter’s cheeks burn. “Uh, well, um, Spiderman seemed worried about you.” It wasn’t a lie at all, but, as always, it was odd to talk about himself in the third person.  

This made Wade’s head fly up, and allowed Peter a glimpse of the merc’s scarred lips. The young man didn’t let his eyes linger on Wade’s lips, for fear of it being considered a negative stare. Peter also flushed when he realized  _ why  _ he’d been staring at the man’s mouth.  _ What are you thinking, Parker?  _ Peter thought scoldingly.  _ MJ’s gotten into your head.  _

“Spidey was worried about  _ me? _ ” Wade questioned, mystified. 

Peter’s brows furrowed at Wade’s words. “Of course he was. You disappeared after talking about-” Peter stopped himself. He didn’t want Wade to know how much he knew, and then wonder how Peter knew so much about Spiderman, causing chaos to erupt. 

Unfortunately for Peter, Wade knew what he was alluding to. A dark aura seemed to emit from him as he leaned back against the washer, arms crossed. Peter noticed his scarred hands clenching his hoodie sleeves. Once again Peter forced his eyes away as he marveled at the texture of the man’s skin. 

“Don’t get too involved with all this Peter, I’m surprised Spidey told you anything. He’d never forgive himself if anyone got wrapped into this fuck fest,” Wade said with a hint of worry to his voice. 

A small, sad smile twitched at Peter’s lips. When did Wade get to know him this well, he wondered. “He didn’t tell me too much. A lot of New Yorkers know about what happened all that time ago with the symbiotes. Alien’s invade New York every once in awhile, but this was a different level.” Peter replied softly. His chest hurt just remembering how fearful his home had become after everything with Venom and Carnage. 

At that, Wade’s body turned slightly to him. “What can you tell me about Spidermans involvement with those symbiotes?” 

As he spoke, Peter felt the hairs on his neck stand. Images flashed of Carnage’s rampages, which made the spider shiver. “I don’t know anything, really,” Peter lied. 

He didn’t want Deadpool to know about it. He wasn’t sure how the merc would react if he found out. Peter had spent  _ hours  _ deleting all the content he could about his involvement from the Avengers records. It had partially been in rage at them, but at the same time it was to save himself. He didn’t want them knowing all they knew. There were a few files left that Peter hadn’t deleted, so as to not accidentally alert Tony. This included things such as just how involved he’d really been with the symbiote… things he wanted to be destroyed, but would stick out like a sore thumb in his files if they disappeared. 

Wade didn’t look convinced, but he must have seen the pale look on the boy’s face. He didn’t press further, though Peter could tell he was frustrated. 

“What’s with the blood?” Peter asked, changing the subject. He hadn’t forgotten about the still damp crimson on the man’s clothing. 

Once again, Wade became rigid. “Had to clean up a bit of a mess. I didn’t kill anyone, so no need to tattle to Spidey about it.” 

A silence stretched between the two that clearly held tension. Peter wanted to ask more, demand some answers, but knew that Wade wouldn’t provide them since Peter hadn’t told him anything either. He also felt a bad gut feeling about the blood, but he believed Wade hadn’t killed anyone. While anyone else would have jumped to that conclusion, Peter was different. 

“You okay kid? You don’t look too hot, well you look hot don’t get me wrong, but like you look like you’re about to chundy on me.” Wade took a hesitant step closer to look at the young man’s pale features. 

“Just a lot of late nights,” Peter admitted as he rubbed his tired eyes. 

Wade chuckled softly at that, then glanced up again. Peter once again saw a scarred set of lips, this time turned up into a smile. The skin stretched, flesh moving oddly compared to smooth skin, and created a soft smile. Wade’s teeth were white, straight, and set off an easily warming or cocky smile. Peter found he really liked Wade’s lips.  _ No, the look of them! They look pretty - no uh, cool, yeah,  _ Peter thought while a blush began to form on his pale face. 

“Have a seat and sleep kid, you need some rest. I’ll be your knight in shining armour and valiantly protect you from perverts. Can’t say I won't coo at your sleeping face, as a preface,” Wade babbled. 

“You’re something Deadpool,” Peter groaned as he lied onto the floor. “Thanks though, but I could do without the ‘cooing’.” 

As Peter closed his eyes again, he noticed another smile on the merc’s face. “No promises Petey-Pie.”

 

***

 

This time, after Peter awoke, Wade took him to a placed that he claimed served the best curry in New York. After they ordered they sat in the corner of the shop while the cooks worked behind the bar top. Flames occasionally lit up the shop, causing the smell of Indian cuisine to make their mouths water. Peter forgot how famished he was, until Wade dragged him inside. Being who he was, he metabolised food far too quickly, and didn’t have the money to maintain his nutrient demanding body. 

“You sure know a lot of eateries,” Peter commented. He took a swig from the bottle of cream soda the older man had bought him. 

Peter could read Wade’s expression just from the tilt of his head and gasp. “Are you telling me, you, a New Yorker, don’t think it's important to know about all the twenty four hour eateries? Well, let me tell you kid, you need to get on this foodgasm train.” The appalled tone of his voice made Peter crack a smile. “Oh, your smile! Kid, I think I’m in  _ love _ !” 

After shaking his head, the college student glanced back to the merc. “You sure are something Dead-” 

“Wade.” 

“ _ Wade, _ ” Peter corrected himself. 

A few moments passed before Wade smirked. “Does this made me your sugar daddy? Buying you food, watching you sleep, I’m fulfilling the role of saggy old dude perfectly!” Wade joked as he spread his hoodie clad arms wide. 

This made the younger man scowl before a smirk wormed its way to the corner of his lips. “You’re a nutcase.” 

“No, I’m the nuthouse. Package deal, sweetheart,” Wade snickered. “I would offer to show you what a  _ nut  _ really looks like, but my heart belongs to another.” Before Peter could retort - after choking on his drink - Wade continued onto himself, “Okay Yellow, that comes off a little too strong - ha  _ cum _ \- but we can’t scare the kid too much. Why? Because he knows spidey, can you imagine how spidey would react if this kid told him-” 

Peter ignored him with an eye roll as the man continued his inner monologue. While the man had extremely raunchy, disturbing, and sometimes down right horrific jokes, he still had a humour that made Peter’s mouth twitch. Even if that humour was discussing Wade busting a load in front of some kid like it was some demented health class. 

“Mr. Pool, your food!” a man called from the servery. 

Stopping his internal chat, Wade sauntered over to grab the food and slid the cook an extra twenty. Another smile found its home on Peter’s lips while Wade settled down across from him. 

“You know, you’re really not as bad as some people say you are,” Peter commented as he took a bite of his food. He noticed the man tilt his head down so that there was no way for Peter to see his face at all. Peter guessed Wade didn’t realize he’d caught a few glimpses of his skin by now. 

“You sound like Spidey when he gave me a pep talk a few years back,” Deadpool laughed as he took a bite of his food. Peter could tell from the flustered reply, the man must be blushing. 

Peter wondered how his skin would look with a rose tint to it.

Shaking his head, Peter chewed his lips. “I guess the two of us think kind of alike.” 

They ate in silence, and Peter kept his eyes down to avoid making Wade self conscious. He did, however, find his eyes drifting to Wade’s scarred fingers that poked out of his sweater sleeves. Wade must not have figured he’d run into anyone considering it was rare he’d ever showed this amount of skin around those who he knew. Granted, that was what he’d heard from others around him. He’d never actually seen Deadpool without his full uniform - or at least his mask - on. 

“So, you tattled to Spidey on me,” Wade teased as he took a long sip from his pop. Peter could tell he was clearly amused, not upset. 

“If you were me and some dude walked in covered in blood to a laundromat, I think you’d tell a superhero if you knew one.” Peter quirked his brow in challenge as he took a bite of his curry. It flamed in his mouth and tasted like hot mango. 

This made Deadpool laugh, his teeth gleaming from under the over pulled hoodie. Peter tried to calm the eruption of butterflies that pounded in his stomach like a swarm - fluttering so quickly he thought he’d cough them up. Only a few times Peter had made Wade laugh, and, just like the previous times, Peter was mesmerized. This wasn’t the ‘merc chuckle’ this was something genuine. 

“It wasn’t that funny,” Peter retorted as he tried to calm himself down. It was like he’d had a lid on the jar of butterflies, but, because of MJ’s comment, they burst forth in a fury as to not be ignored again. He recognized this feeling, and a part of him was terrified of it. 

Wade waved a hand in front of him with amusement. He noticed his showing skin, and quickly tucked his hands under the table. Peter felt his lips twitch down at the movement. With a shake of his head, Wade chuckled softly. “You’re just such a goodie two shoes. It’s refreshing to see, especially coming from my line of work,” Wade explained. 

Peter couldn’t not notice that Wade refused to bring his hands back into view to eat. 

“You don’t really see it in my neighborhood,” Peter admitted as he took a slow sip of his drink. “I guess that’s why though, you know? Someone has to-” Peter stopped himself. He  _ knew  _ Wade knew that statement.  _ Someone has to stick up for the little guy.  _ “My Aunt and Uncle were really good people, and I tried rebelling a few years back. It… went sour, and ever since I’ve made sure to be the best kid I can be. Even if that makes me a goodie two shoes,” Peter explained. He was surprised by the spewing of words. He never told anyone about himself, let alone  _ Deadpool  _ of all people. The only one who knew anything about the kid behind the mask was Tony, and that was because he could be an invasive prick. Still, no one knew about that night besides him and MJ. 

There was a moment of hesitation before Wade spoke, “Were?” 

Peter smiled sadly. “My Uncle died a while back… I blame myself for it. If I hadn’t been an arrogant kid, he’d still be okay.” The spider felt his heart clench in remembrance of holding Ben as he died in his arms. “My Aunt didn’t deserve to lose him, and he didn’t deserve to die. He was just such a good man, and helped everyone. I’ve been trying to do that since, in his legacy, in one way or another,” he spoke softly. Everything he’d ever done was to make Ben proud. 

“Well, I’m not good at emotional stuff,” Wade prefaced as he smiled humorlessly. “But you seem like a really good kid, Peter. I’m not even half the man you are,” he insisted with another sad smile. 

“Thank you, Wade. But, from what Spiderman has told me, I think you’re pretty amazing.” Peter glanced up from behind his dark lashes to the merc. 

A quiet, emotional silence fell over them as Peter finished his meal. The merc had a small smile on his lips, but refused to give Peter much of a look at it. Instead the man packed up his leftovers and paid the bill while Peter watched him.  _ God, why was I ever mean to such a nice man,  _ he thought solemnly. He knew Wade’s profession was anything but innocent, but Peter didn’t know the first thing about the merc. A part of him wanted to change that. Another part of him was worried what he’d find, and what that would mean for his own secrets. 

Outside the building the spring air cooled off into a chill. The neon sign above them flickered while street lamps lit up their paths. The city bustled with life as they emerged from their own private, quaint bubble. The air polluted sky casted a glow of grey tinted colours in the dark. The warmth of Wade’s body seemed to reach out into the space between them. 

“Get home safe Petey-Pie,” Wade ordered softly. 

Peter smirked. “You too, Deadpool.” 

Wade walked past Peter, and Peter felt a flush warm his already warm cheeks as Wade’s scarred fingers brushed through his hair as he passed. 

***

 

Nearly a week later, Peter flew over the buildings of New York in the spring air. The wind whipped his face as he launched himself from skyscraper to skyscraper. People below blurred into a mass of bodies with random colour patterns as if they were an abstract painting. His eyes wandered their bodies to find a signal of distress, but it was a relatively quiet evening. 

As he passed the Avengers tower he made sure to kick off it extra hard - hoping to break a window, but as always it didn’t leave more than a smear. 

Midterm exams were hitting him full force again at the same time as all the worry over Carnage. There wasn’t enough hours in his day to accommodate the life of Peter Parker and the life of Spiderman. The oh so amazing Avengers hadn’t given Spiderman any acknowledgments when he’d contacted them over Carnage. All they said was that there was no sign of him, so Tony said there wasn’t anything they could do. Well, it wasn’t Tony, Happy had told him because Tony was ‘too busy’. He felt like a fifteen year old again. 

Not to mention the second biggest thing on his mind, just behind the serial killer: Deadpool. 

He couldn’t get the feeling of his rough skin out of his head. Everytime he thought of it, his skin would crawl pleasantly while butterflies giggled in his stomach. His mind wandered frequently to that incident as well. He could still feel his fingers in his hair. Once he’d gotten home that night he had dreamt of the merc, dreamt of the feeling of his fingers traveling his sides to wrap around him and hold him close. When he’d awoken he could smell the scent of gunpowder and cologne from his clothing being in close proximity the night before. Unconsciously he’d worn the hoodie for two days. 

MJ had also called him out on how his mind seemed to drift the past few days. She’d asked about it, and Peter had just told her it was nothing. He could tell that she knew something was up, but he guessed she just chalked it up to Carnage. Peter was grateful for that, because he didn’t want to be explaining his feelings for a gun for hire to Mary Jane when his life was crazy enough. 

As he felt the strain on his arms pull again, Peter found a nice rooftop to rest on. Every muscle ached, but Peter couldn’t let himself rest. Even if he didn’t have a solid lead, he couldn’t stop looking for Cletus Kasady. His paranoia was eating him alive. The one night he hadn’t dreamt of Wade romantically, he’d dreamt of the red and black clad man being tortured by Carnage. Peter squeezed his eyes shut as he remembered all the harmful words dream Wade had thrown at him in blame and betrayal. When he had woken up afterwards he’d ran to the bathroom to vomit up his anxiety. All he could see behind his palpebras were the eyes of Gwen when he failed to save her, and the look on Wade’s masked face for doing the same to him. 

Peter fell back onto the rooftop while his lungs rose and fell. He could feel anxiety creeping up his throat and constricting like a serpent. It had been  _ weeks  _ and absolutely nothing had turned up about the killer. He’d checked news from across the country, but nothing pinged on his radar. He was fearful that maybe he had found something, but because Carnage was a symbiote, his spider senses hadn’t picked up on it. He needed to find Carnage  _ now  _ before it killed him. 

“Spidey?” 

Peter jumped up at that, and relaxed when he saw a familiar man approach him. “Hey,” he sighed in relief as he fell back onto his butt. He leaned his back against the raise of the roof to watch the merc. He was surprised to see how his spidey senses didn’t associate Deadpool with  _ threat  _ anymore. 

Wade came and sat down beside him. Peter was surprised by his lack of jokes, and instead noticed the furrow of the man's eyebrows. 

“You okay, Spidey?” Deadpool asked in worry. 

Peter blushed under the mask. “Yeah, just tired,” he partially admitted. 

Deadpool drew his lips into a thin line before letting it go. Peter was grateful of that. “Here, I was listening to a cop radio that spotted you around here so I got us some tacos.” At his statement Wade shook a bag he held. The bottom of the bag was heavy and dark with grease. 

“Thanks,” Spiderman replied gratefully as Wade handed him a hard shelled taco. He quickly pulled up his mask to his nose to take a bite. The delicious taste of ground beef, cheese, and lettuce filled his mouth with a crunch.  

“Hard shell are the best,” Deadpool stated as he smiled at the smaller man. 

Peter nodded in agreement as he chewed around the corn chips. 

Hesitantly, the older man rolled up his mask to take a bite of his food. Peter glanced at the merc with his peripheral vision. He watched the way his scarred skin moved as he chewed, the man's skin similar to the surface of the moon. The texture looked rough, but lacked the scabbing he’d seen before. Wade had mentioned ‘bad skin days’ when he was stressed, so Peter guessed he wasn’t too caught up in his head at the moment. 

Peter couldn’t help himself from his thoughts; Wade looked beautiful. 

“You’re awfully quiet today,” Peter commented as he slowly chewed his food. 

Deadpool hummed with a smirk. Peter’s heart fluttered like the wings of a hummingbird. “Just a lot of stuff going on in the Deadpool consultancy firm.” 

Peter frowned before yawning slightly. “I don’t like it when you’re not yourself. Makes me uneasy,” he stated truthfully. 

“Is that permission to touch that nice bubble butt of yours?” Wade teased as he reached over and pinched the flesh between his fingers while making kissy noises. 

Peter was quick to spin around and press his foot against the merc’s face while he webbed the man’s hand against his the man’s on own thigh. “You’re such an idiot,” Peter chided with a deep blush while Wade laughed hysterically. 

“You’re too adorable, baby boy,” the man cooed as he rubbed his half masked face against the spiders foot. “And you’re letting me live out my foot fetish? What’s gotten you into such a good mood?” 

Peter somersaulted backwards before webbing the tacos over to him - a few feet between the two. “That’s gross.” 

“You shouldn’t kink shame!” Wade gasped before a smile flashed over his teeth. “No yellow, I think spidey is pretty vanilla.” 

Rolling his eyes, Peter took another taco from the bag. He hoped Deadpool couldn’t see the blush on his cheeks. 

They continued to eat in silence as the sky darkened into night. The noise level below had decreased slightly by the time they had finished the bag of food. Wade had babbled nonsense the whole time, and it made Peter’s chest feel warm knowing he’d done it to make the spider feel relaxed. 

As they finished they’re last bites, Wade fell silent. Glancing up, Peter flushed when he saw Wade’s eyes on him. The man’s lips were quirked up into a softly glowing smile, the whites of his mask dipped into a fond gaze. Those blasted butterflies emerged again, fluttering around his stomach in a swarm. They crawled up his throat, and spilled from his lips in a quick exhale. 

“What? Is there something on my face?” Peter questioned as he patted his face in search for a stray piece of lettuce. 

“Nah, it’s nothing,” Wade chuckled softly before rolling down his mask. The fond look didn’t leave his face. 

Peter was about to press for more - his heart racing while not knowing what to say - when a horrified shout sounded from below. 

As fast as lightning, Peter dropped down from the roof. He webbed to the building while landing on the hard concrete. The woman's shout echoed again. Her voice wavered and clearly was wet with tears. Glancing over, Peter saw Wade land harshly beside him. He winced at the sound of snapped bones. 

Looking around, he located the young woman a few feet over as a man dashed away from a vehicle - the window completely smashed. Before Peter could even begin to web up to chase the man, Deadpool was dashing after the assalent. It took merely seconds for the mercenary to overcome the man and shoot a rubber bullet at his back. Peter’s eyes widened at the quick action of the masked man. The vandal hollered in pain as he fell while Deadpool rushed up. Peter quickly turned his eyes as the man screamed while Wade crushed a bone under his foot. 

While the man demobilized the criminal, Peter approached the sobbing woman. 

“Are you okay, ma’am?” Peter asked as he lightly placed his hand on her shoulder. Another crunch and scream sounded from where Wade was. He turned to scream at the merc when the woman threw herself into Peter’s body. 

Without a word he comforted the woman while Deadpool finally stopped tormenting the man. With a few heated and dark jokes, Wade dragged the man by his collar back over to the car. 

“What happened here?” Peter asked gently as the woman collected herself. 

“I-I was coming back from the movies and I saw the man rummaging through my car and stealing my things,” she explained as she tried to calm her breathing. 

A wet thud hit the cement and the woman glanced over. She gasped and looked up from the bloodied criminal to Deadpool. The merc smiled encouragingly as he outstretched his arm, a backpack dangling in his grip. “Looking for this?” he asked. 

“Th-Thank you!” the young woman gasped as she took the bag from his hand. “My camera, wallet, and my journal were in here. I thought I’d lost them,” she blubbered as more tears seemed to surface in her eyes. 

To Peter and Wade’s surprise, the woman stepped over the criminal and threw her arms around Deadpool in a grateful hug. The merc hesitated before wrapping his arms around her with a clearly confused yet sheepish look on his face. Peter smiled fondly - also noting he’d have to remind the merc not to break bones when teaming up. 

“Oh my god, thank you so much!” she said with wet cheeks as she pulled back. The blood on her sweater from hugging the merc didn’t even seem to faze her. 

Deadpool looked like a deer in headlights, wide whites and parted mouth. “Uh, that’s me, your friendly neighborhood Deadpool,” he stammered. He was clearly flustered, but happy to have someone thank him. 

Peter smiled as the girl gave Wade another quick hug to which the merc easily returned this time. She turned to Peter and thanked him profusely as the two masked men made sure she could get home safely to patch up her window. Wade helped get rid of the glass before she stepped into the car, after stepping on the now webbed up man much to the merc’s amusement. Once she was in her car - after sending out a tweet Peter imagined - she waved to them as she left. 

Peter held the photo she’d given him before she’d left. It was a polaroid she insisted on taking of the two in thanks. Wade was clearly amused as he wrapped his arm around Spiderman’s neck, and dragged him into a side hug. Peter was cleared dwarfed in the man’s arms. 

“You did good,” Peter complimented as they left after calling the cops to arrest the vandal. 

Now, Wade was clearly blushing. “You know, all in a day's work. I’m awesome, so of course I did good,” he replied cockily to mask the warmth that grew in his chest. 

Peter just smiled once more. “You’re good at this hero business, so long as you stop breaking people's hands.” 

At that, the merc stopped. Peter turned to look at the man who fiddled with his fingers timidly. The man looked so small and adorable under his stare. “It was nice,” Wade admitted, so quietly Peter nearly missed it. “Helping someone, seeing someone happy for something I did. And sorry Spidey, but I don’t regret the bone breaking.” 

With yet another smile, Peter approached the man to place a hand on his shoulder. Wade looked up with the whites of his mask wide. “Let’s get some celebratory ice-cream for another deed well done.” 

“I love our celebratory ice-cream dates,” Wade chuckled warmly. 

“It’s not a date,” Peter said with a flush as he glanced at the polaroid in his fingers.

“Whatever you say, baby boy.” 

 

***

 

The next time Peter saw Wade was at the laundromat again. Wade had taken him to get greek, and the week after it had been chinese. 

As he walked back from the chinese restaurant with takeout in hand, he was joined by the masked Deadpool. He was in his full get up and rambling about something to do with a mission a few years back. Peter caught the mention of something called a Hell Cow and how Wade had mourned his death while eating the hamburger the cow had turned into in the sunlight. While it didn’t make a lick of sense to the college student, he listened on in amusement. He wasn’t sure though if it was okay to chuckle at the mention of a vampiric cow being indirectly killed then eaten by the merc, however. 

It was nice that they had fallen into a routine. At 3 a.m Peter would go to the laundromat on Tuesday to meet with the merc to do their laundry then go for something to eat. With how busy Peter had been trying to find Carnage and keep his mission a secret from Deadpool, it was nice to enjoy the man’s company without fear of being caught. Wade had tried a few times to ask about Spiderman and the symbiote, but everytime was shot down by Peter’s quick attempts at changing the subject. With how disgustingly he talked about the serial killer, Peter didn’t want to see his reaction to finding out Peter was actually trying to go head to head with the symbiote. 

“-and while that was a very weird team up, I’ve had weirder involvements.” 

“I’m sure,” Peter said with a smirk. 

There was a long pause while they walked - which was weird. Before Peter could ask what was wrong, Deadpool turned to him. A serious look replaced his usual jester. 

“There’s been something on my mind recently - yes White I know there’s a lot but I’m talking about one thing right now,” Wade muttered. 

Peter looked at the merc nervously as they stopped outside his building. “What’s that?” 

Deadpool frowned. “The Daily Bugle. You sell photos of Spidey to them, but the only stories they’ve covered recently…” Deadpool’s fists clenched in his crossed arms as he spoke. 

At that, his mind flashed to the headline today:  _ Carnage and Spiderman Killing Under Law Enforcements Noses! _

__ “It’s complicated,” Peter replied vaguely. 

The merc’s stone expression didn’t change. “Clearly Spiderman and Carnage have history. What is it? And why do you sell to a newspaper that defames the superhero you claim to know? Why does Spidey let you?” The tone of his voice left no room for discussion, only answers.  

If Peter had been any regular college kid, he’d be shaking at the dark tone. Instead, he stood his ground. “I have no idea.” 

They stared one another down for a long moment. 

Peter hated this. He was already falling apart from fear of the missing villain and all his now recurring nightmares. He didn’t need to lose the one thing keeping him sane. Every night he woke up soaked in sweat with the fear of Deadpool’s betrayed features burned in his retinas. Whenever he blinked he’d see the torment Carnage could do against the man behind his eyelids. The fear of knowing Wade might be tracking down the symbiote was killing him. He’d finally confided to MJ a few nights previous before crying on her sofa late at night. This is why he didn’t want to catch these… these  _ feelings.  _ He was horrified this would be a Gwen all over again. He’d tried to put walls up, but damn it Wade’s concern for Spiderman, the way he laughed, the jokes he made, the fact he was giving up  _ everything  _ he knew to be a better person, it was all too much. Peter was falling, and he was falling  _ hard. _

__ But he couldn’t. He couldn’t fall in love again. Love was risky, love led to those he cared about being hunted down. He couldn’t lose someone again. He needed to keep whatever was sprouting between him and Wade from overgrowth. Peter needed to let whatever it was shrivel up and die before it hurt him. What had happened to being friends with the merc like he had for years? When had this seedling of feelings begun to grow before he realized it had breached the surface?

No, it didn’t matter. What he needed to do was put Carnage away - the biggest threat he’d ever faced. He needed the villain behind bars, but even then he wasn’t sure he could ever have what he’d begun to crave with the man before him. 

“Goodbye, Deadpool,” Peter departed coldly as he opened the doors to his apartment building and let them shut firmly behind him. 

 

***

 

A red figure above smirked at the exchange. 

“It’s easier to take down a pack when you split them apart,” he giggled. “It’s almost time.” With one last excited look at the clearly upset men, he crawling back into the night. 

 

***

 

**You’re getting** **_real_ ** **hands and feely with that Peter kid, and then threatening him! Spidey won’t like that, not to mention you’re practically cheating on the love of our life when you’re not threatening the other love of our life!** Yellow wailed loudly in Wade’s head. 

_ First of all, you have to be dating to cheat. Secondly, as if that cute kid would ever like us. Hell, he’s probably freaked out now and ready to tell Spiderman to throw us to the Avengers.  _

__ **Oh, kinds like Simba did to Scar!**

_ What else did you think I was referencing you- _

__ Wade groaned as he rubbed his temples. He’d just gotten to his warehouse in Hunts Point from the laundromat, and he hadn’t been able to have a moment to himself. He kept thinking of the college student with his long eyelashes, freckled cheeks, and bedhead hair. He was angelic, and Wade was getting too close. Peter reminded him a lot of Spidey with their morals and undeniable unknown control over him. And then he’d gone and practically threatened him, not that it wasn’t just. What was the kid hiding for the masked hero? 

“We gotta stay away from this kid. How old was he again? I’m not pulling a Fogle am I?” Wade wondered in horror. Maybe it was a good thing he’d probably just ruined whatever had been happening between the two.

_ How ironic would it be if you turned out be just like Agent Smith.  _ White was clearly amused by Wade’s inner turmoil. 

**Hey, the kid said he was a college kid didn’t he? And he doesn’t look like a teenager anyways. Besides you’re not that great at telling age since you don’t age anymore, dipshit! And you’re ugly mug isn’t much in the way of reference.**

_ Wow, Yellow being observant? How surprising!  _ White gasped. 

Wade tuned them out as Yellow began to scream profanities. Instead, his mind drifted to the van. His eyes wandered to the van parked in the warehouse. He’d taken the bodies from it and moved them into ice chests for the time being. He hadn’t been able to tell what they had been murdered with yet, but just from looking at them it appeared that it was something not human. Wade pondered the existence of a new villain, maybe a rogue mutant? He wasn’t sure yet though, since some men could do some fucked up shit. It could be a regular man with a super suit or alien tech. He still had tests to run. 

Sighing, he got up and once again dug through the van compartments. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, and the only phone he’d recovered was crushed. The one saving grace was parts weren’t completely busted. The only thing Weasel had recovered from it was a phone number that lead to a prepaid phone that had long ago been abandoned at this point. From the amount of calls to the employer, Wade figured it had been a set up for their demise.

The one thing he couldn’t figure out was where that cylinder had gone, and what was inside it. 

It was approaching evening the next day when Wade couldn’t take it anymore. It had been three weeks, and nothing had come up. He kicked the van in frustration, forming a large dent in the side of the vehicle. Satisfied, Wade continued to kick out his frustration before he emptied a case of bullets into the back passenger side tire. A flock of birds that lived in the rafters cawed in alarm before recklessly flying outside the building.

“Bad Deadpool,” Wade muttered as he pressed the warm shaft of the pistol against his temple. He took a few long inhales as he calmed down his angered nerves.

Once he was calmed down enough to not use the next tire as target practice he grinned happily to himself. “Good Deadpool!”  

Quickly his good mood was diminished, however. The voices hinted at something he’d been thinking since he obtained the van, but he refused to listen to. 

“I said I wouldn’t get him involved!” Wade snarled agrily. His eyes drilled holes into the tire that almost seemed to cower in fear as he reloaded his gun. 

**_You don’t have much choice, unless you want whatever did this to keep turning up bodies,_ ** The two spoke. 

Wade ground his teeth. “The one time you assfucks agree and it’s on this! Suck a cock!” He grunted as he moved to sit on the open tailgate, allowing the tire another day of being inflated. His anger flared in his chest, and his fear began to work its way up as well. 

Cocking the gun, Wade pointed it at the wall of the warehouse. He’d taped up a crayon drawing of Cletus fuckface the other day. It was already littered with bullet holes. This time, Wade focused on the family jewels. 

_ There is always ways to find out…  _ White mumbled. 

Wade unloaded half a casing, neutering the drawing. 

Wade could feel the tension yet excitement wave off Yellow.  **Spidey would be mad… but it’s been** **_so long_ ** **.**

A part of Wade got excited at the idea. He allowed his mind to enter forbidden territory of a time before meeting the webhead. A phantom smell of gunpowder filled his senses while he could feel his eyes basking at the sight of the perfect shot that burrowed right between those stupid fucking eyebrows. He envisioned those lifeless blue eyes with that cocky grin blown off his face. 

Taking a deep breath, Wade banished the images. “ _ Who fucking cares, _ ” Wade murmured softly. Francis should be far from his mind, even the remembrance of his satisfying death shouldn’t be relished in. Wade still didn’t care if he killed people, he just cared about those who wanted him to stop. The few slip ups that Wade had, had after that night of Spidermans break down, he didn’t care they died at all. The only thing he felt was satisfaction before a wave of nausea as he realized the spider would find out about his mistake. He wasn’t remorsefully for those he killed - they fucking deserved it - he was remorseful for how Spiderman must have felt seeing Deadpool’s name beside a dead man's. 

Wade moved the barrel of his gun and unloaded the remainder of the clip into the little drawing of himself attacking the symbiote with his kantanas. “Bad Deadpool,” he muttered again as he set the gun down. His body was tense and sore all over. 

_ Well, if you won’t do that, that leaves you one option.  _ Even though White was inside his head, it still felt like a hard stare fell on his shoulders.  _ And, if you get Spiderman involved with the van, it keeps him away from Carnage. While he’s busy helping you with this, you can focus on the ginger fuckface again.  _

As he took a deep breath, he heard Yellow’s slightly disappointed compliance.

Wade’s face hardened in final agreement before he slipped out his phone. Quickly he pressed in buttons he knew by heart, but had never used in the past years. As he waited his eyes wandered to the shredded drawing before him. Two rings later there was a shuffle from the other line followed by a surprised voice, 

“Deadpool? What’s wrong?” 

“Hey Spidey, you might want to come down to my warehouse in Hunts Point.” 

 

***

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the feed back on the last chapter made me shed happy tears!!! thank you all so much!!!
> 
> (also, quick reminder this is based on my interpretations/similar characteristics of what Comic Peter looks like or if not preferably Andrew Garfieldish Spiderman, not Tom Holland since he's supposed to portray a 15 year old in the movie)
> 
> Homecoming was such a good movie yo, but fuck Tony Stark man. 
> 
> Also I'm ginger, so let me make ginger jokes to Cletus Fuckface Kasady. It's what Wade would want. 
> 
> More Carnage is to come, and more angst! This chapter was to get the van plot rolling, and give some flow to their love story, so as not to make it seem like it happened over night.
> 
> Reminder: I have no beta and I posted this at 5:44am, so if there is grammar mistakes or ect they'll be fixed when this work is completed and I go beta it. 
> 
> Please leave me more comments they're so sweet and validate my gay heart.
> 
> Find me @  
> louiswt.tumblr.com


	3. ACT III

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wade takes Peter to the abandoned warehouse where things take a turn for the worse. Peter feels desperate, and desperation always lands him in trouble. Wade can't believe the amount of secrets he uncovers. And Carnage gets ready for battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "soft spoken with a broken jaw, step outside but not to brawl"

***

  
  


CHAPTER THREE

  
  


Peter flew to Deadpool’s location as if his life depended on it. The spring wind was brisk as it whipped past him. His mind was racing a mile a minute. The fact Deadpool had contacted him said something was  _ bad.  _ At first he’d wondered if it was about Carnage, but he quickly abandoned that theory considering how Wade was so against Spiderman’s involvement with the symbiotes. 

Once Peter neared the location Wade had told him, he swung down and near the foot of the door. It was propped open, letting in a stream of the spring sun. He wandered inside the warehouse and noticed a white van sitting in the center of the shop. Instantly he picked up on the scent of stale, dry blood. The rotten smell seeped from the van menacingly. 

“Hey Spidey,” Deadpool called as he rounded the van from the back. His body was tense and his face was like hard stone. 

“What’s this?” Peter asked carefully as he met Wade halfway. 

Deadpool glanced to the van with angry brows. “The white van from that warehouse scuffle,” he began. Peter had to refrain from shooting him an accusing glance. “I found it last week. It was abandoned in a boat dock parking lot.” 

Wade was harsh and to the point. Peter guessed he’d been brooding for awhile, and he was a tad angry the merc hadn’t came to him sooner. Brushing it aside, Peter gave room for reason. Deadpool must have had logic behind not telling the spider sooner. 

“Why did you keep it a secret for so long?” Peter asked skeptically. He neared the vehicle, but a muscular arm stopped him. 

“You don't want to look inside, yet. You better prepare yourself,” Wade warned. 

Peter swallowed nervously when the statement wasn’t followed up with a joke. He remembered the smell in the air, and took a cautionary step back. Whatever was inside wasn’t going to be pretty. 

“The missing four were inside when I found it. They’d been dead for sometime before I had located them, judging from the stench and flies.” Wade slowly dropped his hand from its blockade against Peter’s chest. “I can’t find any clues as to who did this. The only thing of importance they had was a cellphone, but it was prepaid and we couldn’t pin the location of the only caller.” Wade finally walked in front of Peter to lean against the white vehicle. 

“Do you know what killed them?” Spiderman inquired as he took one small step forward before stopping. He’d seen bad crime scenes before, but, from Wade’s stature, he didn’t think he was prepared. 

The merc groaned in irritation as he rubbed his masked face. “That’s the thing. It doesn’t look like a regular human did it, and if they did they’re one sadistic fuck.” He glanced at Peter’s own masked face before continuing. “One of them looked like he’d been stabbed through the eye and into his brain with a lance. Two of them look like they’ve been beaten with meat cleavers. The last one was strangled - and I could be wrong - but it may have been done with the guys own tongue.”

Peter felt sick from the explanation. Once again, the fact Deadpool wasn’t cracking jokes worried him. Even in horrible situations like this, the merc always had room for humour. Taking a deep breath - which didn’t help much with the scent of rotting flesh - he glanced to Wade. “Are they…” 

“I moved them into ice chests for now. I need to run some tests before I drop them on the precincts doorstep.” Slowly, Deadpool placed a hand on the door handle. “You don’t have to look, but it might help to have some fresh eyes on it. I didn’t want to get you involved, but there wasn’t much of another option…” 

Spiderman looked to the merc with a small smile. “Except for...” he supplied. Wade nodded shamefully, but Peter just approached him before patting his shoulder. “I’m proud of you. Now, show me, please.” 

Wade nodded while a wave of relief seemed to flow off him. Hesitantly, as if waiting for the webslinger to change his mind, Wade pulled open the door. Peter looked over to the vehicle and had to calm his nausea. Blood soaked into the carpet of the van and was splattered down the driver’s seat. More blood pooled from a spot in the passenger’s, signifying were the man’s head would have bled out. The scene was horrific. 

“Fuck,” Peter cussed as he turned his head away. He glanced to the merc while gritting his teeth at the awful smell. 

Deadpool’s shoulders sagged. “I’m sorry, Spidey. I really didn’t want you to see any of this. I moved the bodies so that if you had to help, you wouldn’t have to see them. I doubt you’d ask, but just incase you do, I’m not letting you see them.” The tone in his voice was firm and final.

“I don’t want to,” Peter agreed as he stepped back. “Fuck, Deadpool I’m sorry you had to see this.” 

“It’s weird hearing you curse,” Wade commented as he closed the door. “And I’ve seen worse. I mean this is in the top like, fifteen? But not the worst, I promise you that.”

Peter shook softly at the possibility. “I don’t like that.” 

Wade cocked a brow at that before shrugging. “Have you ever seen anything like this? Maybe a previous villain you were up against?” Deadpool leaned against the van while watching Spiderman. 

A frown appeared on Peter’s lips as he noticed Deadpool tapping his foot anxiously. He realized just how badly he didn’t want to get him involved. He understood that feeling, he’d experienced it numerous times with Gwen and MJ. He wondered if Deadpool had ever experienced something to make him so fearful like Peter had. 

Peter sighed deeply as he rocked on his heels in thought. “I’m not sure. Maiming? There’s a few out there who do that kind of thing… it doesn’t narrow the list down that much.” 

“And there is always newbies,” Deadpool added sullenly. 

Spiderman hummed in thought as he rolled his tense shoulders. “Tombstone maybe? He likes tugging you around.” 

Deadpool groaned at the thought. “I’d prefer to be tugged around in the bedroom - don’t look at me like that of  _ course not by him,  _ that’s your department.” Peter’s cheeks burned. “Anyways, I don’t think it’s him. He’s more of a cock kind of guy than… okay period jokes are too low I’m not going to be misogynistic. Regardless, this ain’t him.” 

Peter snorted at the mans rambling. “You’re not wrong though, he does prefer guns. Also; pretty sure he’s not a cock kind of guy. You’re getting desperate with your puns,” Peter said. 

Wade pouted at that. “Weasel has broken my self confidence.” He glanced to Spiderman for a moment. “Also, I don’t want a repeat of you and red horns boyfriend trying to kick my ass. Really put a set back in our love story for a bit there,” Wade grumbled. “At least red horns  _ knew  _ I was innocent and didn’t shoot, ask questions later.” 

“I didn’t shoot you, Punisher did,” Peter muttered. He did still feel his stomach drop when he remembered Wade’s brain matter exploding all over him. 

Wade scoffed. “You were ignoring my attempts to tell you my innocence, same thing.” 

“Daredevil really hated all the bickering when we teamed up ,” Peter said with a hint of amusement. “And  _ you _ tried taunting Frank into give me a golden shower.” He couldn’t lie he was still sour over that one. 

“If I recall correctly you also made a joke about jizzing in a dude’s eye,” Deadpool replied as he smirked.  

At that, Peter scoffed. “Oh whatever, you make more cum jokes than me.” 

Deadpool’s smirked widen. “It’s my specialty, I like to think I have good aim.” 

They stood silent for a long moment after that, the air still thick with the smell of blood. Their lighter conversation helped get his mind off the blood in the van, and allowed the webslinger a moment to collect his thoughts. Peter felt like the scene resembled something, something from a previous enemy. Unfortunately, it was hard to pinpoint as the arrow was pointed at a few possible culprits. 

“Where was it found?” Peter asked as he came to lean beside Deadpool. He shivered when he realised he was leaning against what could be considered the coffin of four individuals. 

“A dockyard, not too far from here,” Deadpool explained as he watched the younger man. A sad, regretful expression crossed his features. “I shouldn’t have called you-” 

“You did the right thing,” Peter interjected quickly. Wade looked far from convinced. Gently, hesitantly, Peter rested his gloved hand over Deadpool’s crossed arms. His fingers felt the warmth radiating off the merc, and he had to focus on calming his suddenly rapid heartbeat. “I mean it Deadpool, it’s okay to get me involved. I’m not some powerless kid.” 

Wade’s lips didn’t turn up. “Doesn’t matter, Spidey. Whatever did this… it was strong, and you’re not immortal. I don’t want you to-” Wade cut himself off as he scuffed one of his boots over the cement floor. 

Peter felt a warmness radiate in his chest. “I’ve made it this far, haven’t I? And if anything goes wrong I got you with me, Wade.” He squeezed his hand still on the merc’s arm before dropping it. 

They stayed silent for another few moments before Wade pushed off the van to stand before Spiderman. A nervous look was clear on his face, but nevertheless he stood his ground as he looked to the webhead. 

“There’s a building that caught my eye when I found the van. I think it would be a good idea to investigate it,” Wade explained. Before Peter could reply, the merc put his hand up. “But, the moment I think something's up, I want you to stick close to me. Don’t give me that look, I know we’ve teamed up before, but I have a bad feeling about this one baby boy.” Peter frowned at Wade’s words before nodding, glumly. He hated being treated as a child, but he gave Deadpool leeway. Clearly whatever he’d seen in that van was more gruesome than Peter could imagine. 

“I’ll admit, this whole ordeal is giving me a bad feeling,” Peter agreed. 

“Spidey-sense?” Wade offered, a brow raised. 

Peter’s lips turned down. “Something like that, but not like when a gun is pointed at me. It’s like a dull background noise that keeps playing. It happened when you mentioned the van the first time.” 

Once again, Wade’s body was tense. However, the merc tried to hide just how unsettled he was. “Okay bubble butt, let’s get going,” Wade said with a small smirk of humour. 

With a grateful smile, Peter nodded as they moved to leave the shop. Suddenly, the dull roar of his spidey senses stopped for a brief moment. Peter jerked, uncertain, as he glanced behind him. It felt like something had abruptly cut off his senses, like a device that cut off radio signals. It made him feel a little dizzy. 

“Hey, webhead?” Wade called from the door of the shop. 

Shaking his head, Peter turned back to Wade. “Coming!” he called. 

As they left, the door of the van slowly slid open a faction. Something made a squelching sound as it slid from the inside of the van, hitting the floor with a wet thud. Almost as if it could snicker, the red goo crawled towards the doorways sunlight to alert it’s larger counterpart of the plans kick into action. 

 

***

 

“It looks like a place for either chicken fights or for guys to bring girls to, to scare them and cop a feel. I hate it,” Wade rambled.

Peter couldn’t disagree. The building looked shady, and almost seemed to emit an aura of death. The broken windows allowed the cool breeze to gust into it, ruffling a torn curtain still hanging in one window. The paint of the building was peeling away from the brick exterior. The smell of rot emitted from the building that was overdue for its demolishment. Like Wade had explained on the way over, the area felt eerily quiet for New York.

“I think I have my own deady-sense for freaky shit,” Wade hummed as he wrapped his arm around Peter’s shoulders. It felt almost protective, even though the merc tried to mask it in humour. “Like when you talk to a guy on tindr and know he’s all ‘in a bdsm poly relationship where I want you to makeout with my girlfriend but she can’t know we also meet separately’ you feel?” 

Peter smirked at the merc before crawling out of his grip in fear he’d hear Peter’s increased heart rate. “Talking from experience?” He asked as he walked towards the building. 

“Not my thing, unless you’re into that, sweetums.” Wade said while quickly catching up with Peter. Discreetly, he placed himself a pace or two ahead of the spider. 

Peter noticed Wade's movement, but rather than being offended he allowed the merc to go ahead of him. He knew Wade was already nervous due to the looming building that smelt of mildew. In all honesty,  Peter was nervous as well. There seemed to be something  _ off  _ about the building, similar to that dull roar his spidey senses had been emitting. There was something eerie about it, and Peter intended to find out what was going on.

"I wouldn't be surprised if there are some clues about the van here," Peter voiced once they were in front of the doors. He watched as Wade moved forward to the closed doors with a tense stance.

Wade glanced over his shoulder, a heavy metal object in his palm. Peter glanced at it and his eyes narrowed. It was a brand new chain and lock, holding the building hostage. The man watched as Wade bent down and lifted a rusted lock from the floor while scanning the ground. "There is only minimal rust rings on the ground." Wade's voice was hard.

_ Meaning, the lock was broken only within the past few weeks,  _ Peter thought before sharing a look with the merc.

Standing, Wade took the new metal lock in his hand and pulled  _ hard.  _ The lock broke and hung loosely before the man unwrapped the chains. Peter looked at the now useless lock with a small shiver. It always scared him when he saw the side of Wade that was capable of snapping solid metal, or, in other cases, necks.

Once the door was pulled open the two slowly entered the building, their bodies poised ready to be on the offense or defense. The mildew and rot of the building was strong in Peter's nostrils as was the sharp smell of something metallic. Peter's spidey senses flew off the charts as hands suddenly descended on him, blocking his vision. Thinking quickly, he swept his legs out to knock whoever had grabbed him down, but was intercepted. Quickly he was thrown against the body that held him captive while a thick arm imprisoned him. Before Peter could call for Wade, a leather gloved hand slapped over his mouth while leather covered lips reached his ear. "It's just me."

"Jesus Deadpool," Peter huffed. His heart raced at the rush of adrenaline as Deadpool removed the hand from his mouth. Peter's senses were still spiked and going haywire as his vision continued to be obscured. "Let me go," he snapped.

"You don't want to see this Spidey," Wade warned harshly.

Peter was then reminded of the stench of copper.  _ Oh. _

"I've seen blood before," he began.

He could feel Wade's head shaking beside his. "It's worse than the van."

That made a shiver rake through Peter's body. Before he could cave into Deadpool's warnings, he pressed on. "Wade, please."

He knew that calling Wade by his first name was a soft spot for the merc. He felt bad using it in the context, but he needed to help investigate.

Hesitantly, Wade dropped his hold and uncovered Peter's eyes.

Slowly, Peter took in the scene as he heard a sharp intake of breath that he realized must have been his.

Blood bathed the walls and floors. It was as if someone had splashed a can of red paint across the room and haphazardly tried to blend it into the walls, ceiling, and linoleum. He could see the markings on the floor from where the bodies must have been dragged through the red liquid, whether it had been their own blood or the blood of their comrades. There were a few shards and clumps of red spewed across the floor that Peter recognized as bone fragments and possible organs. It took all of his willpower to keep from vomiting and contaminating the crime scene. He also knew it would break the merc to see him in that state.

"Jesus," Peter hissed as he averted his eyes.

Wade wandered the first floor as Peter tried to collect himself. His stomach turned as he tried to breathe, but was only greeted with the smell of copper. As the merc glanced to the elevator with narrowed eyes, Peter saw something from the corner of his vision. "Wade?"

Deadpool stopped to turn to the wallcrawler. He followed the superhero's gaze that landed on an arrow drawn in blood that pointed to the set of stairs. All thoughts of the elevator shaft vanished as he slowly pulled a gun from it's pouch and loaded it. He hoped Spiderman wouldn't notice it now possessed a much more lethal bullet.

Quickly, Peter was crawling along the walls of the staircase to survey ahead. The building  _ appeared  _ silent and there was no sign of his spidey senses going off. In fact, they were alarmingly silent. This made Peter's heart race slightly as pieces began to fall together. His stomach did a dramatic drop.

Before Wade had the chance to react, Peter had the merc webbed to the floor. Wade shouted in surprise as he was thrown to the ground under a net of webbing.

"What the fuck?!" Wade hollered as he struggled against the bindings.

He turned to the spider with a look of confusion, then his eyes widened as the saw the panicked expression Peter couldn't contain behind the mask. The young man's heart felt like it was about to beat out of his chest. Wade was clearly growing distressed at the aura Peter was expelling.

"Spidey, what the fuck? Let me  _ out _ !" Wade ordered. He didn't like the look on his teammates face. Something was deeply wrong. 

"Don't you dare move," Peter finally managed. The command fell short, sounding more like a plea than anything. He could hear his pulse in his ears as he felt his body vibrate with fear. 

Albeit not a good decision to leave a man defenseless, Peter needed to press on without having to worry about Wade walking into a trap with him. The merc would be able to struggle out of the webbing with the help of his kantanas soon enough. Which also meant Peter had to move fast. 

Before Wade could shout more, Peter rushed across the wall and up the stairs. The arrows continued up the flights, and with each set of stairs it became harder to breathe. He was so absorbed in the situation he barely heard Wade demanding answers down below. He wasn’t prepared, he knew that, but if he left he knew the man - no  _ creature - _ wouldn’t be waiting there again. Knowing this, he pressed on until he reached the roof of the building. He slammed through the roof entrance with nothing short of desperation causing the door to break and crash to the ground. 

He could still hear Wade’s shouting when he found it. 

Red blood smeared across the rooftop in scribbled lettering that made Peter being to hyperventilate. The ruined body of a man in a prison uniform was discarded on a chair in the centre of the rooftop attracting an array of flies and maggots. His eyes landed on a white piece of paper stabbed into the man's torn open chest with a nail. Peter’s legs shook violently as he slowly neared the body and took hold of the note. When he opened it, more scrawled out insanity greeted him. 

Peter’s body couldn’t keep him up as his legs crumbled beneath him. He could feel blood seeping into his suit. Whether it was from the man’s blood or his own from scraping his knees he didn’t know. A dizziness fell over him as his heart pumped loudly in his chest. The words inside the letter made him violently ill. He barely registered the angered huff of breath that rushed from behind him. 

“Spidey what the fuck,” Deadpool began, but stopped short. He was silent a moment before he began to nearly shake with rage. “ _ What is this?!”  _

Peter’s eyes read and reread the lettering repeatedly on the ground before him:

 

__ _ YOU CANT SAVE ANYONE _

 

__ With shaky hands he hid the other note in his suit. The words inside the paper tore him apart even more so: 

 

_ ‘Dear Mommy dearest, where is Daddy? Did you bring home a new boyfriend? Does Daddy know you’re a whore for bad men? Does your new boyfriend know you always get everyone around you killed? _

__ __ __ __ __ __ _ \- Love, you know who’ _

 

Peter could feel anxious and rage filled tears brim his eyes. He gripped the top of his head, crinkling his mask between his fingers as he hid his head in his lap. The still rational portion of him registered he was having an anxiety attack. He felt suffocated as his throat refused to swallow while his lungs attempted to gulp down air. 

“Where the fuck are you, you motherfucker!?” Wade screamed as he unsheathed his katanas. His eyes surveyed the area for any sign of movement as his chest heaved with rage. 

Before Wade could run off in search of the unknown enemy, Peter stood and gripped him in place. Deadpool turned to him with a look of pure fury blazing behind the whites of his mask. Just as Deadpool went to shake off the spider, he stopped. The younger man knew he could feel the violent shaking of Peter’s hands against his forearm. 

Without another thought, Wade dropped his kantanas and moved to the masked hero. He quickly gathered the smaller body into a warm embrace that covered Peter’s body. It was warm and comforting like a blanket. Peter blinked rapidly to get rid of the black splotches that obscured his vision. The fear of realizing that if Wade had gone here alone…

“Who did this?” Wade asked softly. 

Peter ignored his question, instead he focused on regulating his breathing. 

Wade quieted as well, knowing from his own experience that the webslinger needed a moment to collect himself. He rubbed soothing circles into Peter’s shoulder’s while humming what sounded like _ Peach.  _ He focused on the merc’s soft hum while his heart rate calmed down and his breathing returned to normal.

By the time he collected himself his body was sore and Wade had hummed the song at least four or five times. He breathed in the smell of leather and gunpowder before slowly moving away from the man. Deadpool watched with worried eyes as the man steadied himself. 

Peter refused to look at the blood again. 

“You okay?” Wade asked softly while sheathing the blades he’d dropped. 

Peter could still hear the ring of his pulse in his ears. “Better. Sorry, I just…” He didn’t know how to put into words how he could only see his dead ex behind his eyes beside a dead Deadpool.  

“Backstory, it’s okay,” Wade assured. “You don’t have to say anything.” 

“It’s not okay,” Peter said. He shivered as he saw the blood at his feet. “Fuck sakes,” he grunted. 

Wade frowned as Peter checked his web slingers. The creature that created this mess couldn’t be far from them, and since his spidey senses were useless he had to start looking stat. He knew the thing would be watching from a vantage point somewhere in amusement. His stomach felt nauseous as he wondered why it hadn’t attacked yet. 

“Spidey, who the hell did this?” Deadpool demanded. He was baffled that Spiderman was already suiting up to get out of the area. 

Peter shook his head firmly. “Don’t get involved.” 

Another alarm of his senses went off as Wade pushed him against the doorway to the staircase. The merc clearly did it gently, but held the spider at bay with force. The weight of the man’s arm was heavy against Peter’s chest, signalling he would have to break bones if he wanted to get out of the hold. Once again, the man had gone from Deadpool to  _ Deadpool.  _

“Who. Left. The. Note.” Deadpool’s voice was hard like stone. He wondered how the merc would react if he saw the one hidden in his suit that burned at his skin. Peter could see the gears turning in the man’s head, knowing he was close to realizing what crazy bastard had thrown him into a panic. 

“Chameleon,” Peter lied. He internally cursed at himself for the stupid choice. Deadpool knew Chameleon’s personality from their previous teamup, and Chameleon had been imprisoned for six months now. 

Deadpool’s arm pressed harder against Peter. “Spidey, I’m not fooling around. Who the fuck is doing this? What kind of fucking insane, blood thirsty bastard-” Wade stopped short, realization dawning on his face. 

The silence stretched as the gears clicked into place. 

“Oh no you don’t!” Peter hollered as he webbed the quick moving assassin. He threw the man back and against the wall of the staircase entrance. The man cussed as the spider quickly tied his webbing around his hands and ankles, keeping him in place. “You don’t get to run off and go get yourself killed!” 

“I could say the same thing about you! But oh, wait, you’ll  _ really die _ !” The pure anger and unadulterated anguish in the older man’s voice made the hairs on Peter’s neck stand. 

“You don’t get to run around acting like its okay how many times you get killed, or tortured, just because you’ll always come back!” Peter accused as his body rattled. “What if one day you don’t escape? What if one day they find a way to kill you?!” 

Deadpool huffed at that, anger making his usual humorous expression dangerous. “Then good riddance to Deadpool! Don’t you fucking get it?!  _ You _ are the one who isn’t allowed to die!” 

“And why the fuck is that?!” Peter felt his blood boiling in his veins. How  _ dare  _ the man before him act like his life meant  _ nothing.  _

“I’m not about to fucking spill my goddamn heart out on a rooftop with a dead guy beside us while you want to go off after a confederate symbiote!” Their voices echoed so loudly they were sure to gain attention soon. 

“What is that even supposed to mean?! I’m going to stop that thing even if it kills me!” He knew what he said was true. Everytime he ever knew he was outmatched he was scared to die, but, so long as he could save others, he’d accept his fate. He knew he’d leave behind a shattered Aunt May, but he knew his sacrifice would save her. MJ promised him she would be there for her. That’s all he could ask for. 

Deadpool practically snarled at that, his body shaking. “It will kill you! You don’t get to go get yourself killed!” 

Before Peter could argue further, Wade managed to dislocate his shoulder to allow his hand access to his kantanas. In the blink of an eye he was free from the webbing and tackling the young hero to the ground. Peter hissed as he hit his head against the cement roof while Wade popped his arm back into place while keeping Peter immobilized. 

“Sorry Spidey,” Wade grunted as he raised his fist. 

Thankfully, Peter’s senses kicked into drive and he found Deadpool’s weak point as he swung his fist down. Peter shoved out from under Wade while kneeing his rib, but the punch still landed hard against his shoulder making him groan in pain. The bruise was going to be black and blue, as Peter could already feel the muscles scream and swell from the impact. 

“I’m not going to let you stow me away somewhere while you track him down!” Peter hissed angrily. He jumped up and landed on the roof of the small stairway access. The webslinger winced at the sound of the mercenary grinding his teeth together in frustration. Quickly a gun was pointed at him, but Peter knew it had rubber bullets in it. Wade wouldn’t  _ really  _ shot him.

“You don’t understand!” Deadpool snapped. “He is fucking crazy. He killed me a dozen times before I even got one up on him!” Peter’s stomach dropped at the confession. “Do you know what lengths I had to go to? To put him away?”

Horror filled Peter’s lungs like tar. “Wade, what did you do?” he whispered in fear. 

The roof was quiet while a breeze blew past them. The air was heavy with their yelling and cursing. Peter wanted nothing more than to run down there and wrap the merc in his arms, but he couldn’t. He needed to focus on the situation at hand before trying to repair the relationship he’d clearly damaged with Deadpool. 

“What about you?” Wade shot back after a long moment. “You mentioned teaming up with a villain.”

Peter was silent. 

As Peter went to speak, he noticed something behind Wade. Lying across the bloody sentence was the door he’d shoved down earlier. He winced at the idea that popped into his head, but he knew what he needed to do. He also knew who he needed to go find after he incapacitated the gun for hire. 

“Sorry Wade, but Carnage is my problem.” 

And with that, before Wade could react, a web pulled the large steel door against the merc’s head. 

 

***

 

_ Fucking symbiotes,  _ Wade thought glumly as he dug through the Avenger files. He had been browsing through all the files Jarvis would provide for hours now. 

After the night previous, Wade had gone on a half mad search for the wallcrawler once he’d awoken on the rooftop. Spiderman hadn't hit him hard enough to kill him, but it had knocked him out cold long enough for the sun to descend. He’d searched the whole night, but no sign of the blue and red spandex ever crossed his vision. Wade worried that Carnage had fought the younger man and captured him, but no news of the symbiote had been broadcasted. 

_ He probably hasn’t found him. Carnage won’t be found unless he wants to be,  _ White reminded. 

**And we’re not on the same wavelength, and we shouldn’t even bother with that ever again,** Yellow agreed with a small waver to the words. 

That was the one saving grace. He cursed himself though for loading his gun with bullets, and not leaving one with rubbers. When he’d gone to shoot the spandex clad man to immobilize him, he’d had to stop himself. No matter how badly he wanted to stop Spiderman from running after the symbiote, he wasn’t going to  _ shoot  _ him. Wade had gone back to his safe house and sat in worry while making calls to Weasel. He confirmed the dead man on the roof was the man that Wade had caught that first night. He’d gone missing after he was given his dinner the day previous. 

Wade had replayed the entire botched mission in his head, and his rage clouded mind finally landed on a single clue. The masked hero had been holding something when Wade first made it onto the roof, a personal message from Carnage. He’d only been able to make out the first line, however: 

_ ‘Dear Mommy dearest, where is Daddy?’ _

**While I don’t think Spidey is in some dd/lg relationship with fuckface, the note said daddy?** Yellow had sounded confused. 

_ … _

“What, White?” Wade had said, picking up on the boxes thoughtfulness. 

_ Venom… Venom is Carnage’s creator. _

So with that knowledge, Wade finally snapped to his senses and marched to the Avengers tower and had demanded access. And by demanding access, he had come into the foyer asking to speak with tin can while polishing his gun. 

Tony had been less than impressed that the man nearly made his secretary piss his pants. Still, when the man had seen Wade’s expression he’d reluctantly had given him clearance. 

So, Wade currently found himself in a large office space, overflowing with the data banks of all Avenger knowledge. Tony would stop by the room Wade was in every so often to assure that he wasn’t stealing some top secret files to which Wade told him to kindly shove it where the sun don’t shine. He didn’t give a fuck about secret files, he wanted to find out what Spiderman was hiding. Clearly he was hiding it well as Jarvis admitted many of the files on Spiderman’s involvement with the symbiotes simply didn’t exist anymore. Jarvis had been distressed at Wade’s findings, and had been processing all the files before giving them for the merc to read. 

_ Baby boy is smart, but damn why did he have to do this,  _ Wade thought with narrowed eyes.  _ He’s hiding something big.  _

“Jarvis do you know if there is any video footage out there on the web - ha - of Spiderman and any symbiote? You gotta have something there brains,” Wade scoffed while waving away the latest file he was looking at. 

_ “There are a few articles in magazines about an incident with our hero Spiderman and Symbiotes,”  _ Jarvis promised _. “Please tell me you at least checked the internet before bothering Mr. Stark.”  _

__ “Nope, thought you guys would have better shit than  _ this, _ ” Wade said as he motioned to the lack of anything on the holographic screen. “Put up a video,” he requested while kicking his feet up on the desk. 

Jarvis made a comment about hygienics and manners that Wade ignored. Suddenly a video popped up on the hologram that made the merc lunge forward in shock. 

He saw the red and blue suited super hero swinging from building to building around a red mass in the center of the street. The audio was terrible, but Wade could still hear the clear shout in the younger man’s voice, 

“Eddie! To you’re right!” 

Wade watched in mute horror as Spiderman and Venom worked alongside one another, jumping off each other as if they had been teammates for years. Eddie Brock fought against Cletus Kasady with something that showed personal interest in crushing the symbiotes face in. Wade’s heart nearly stopped as he saw Spiderman get stuck in Cletus’s trap and become entangled in the symbiotes tendrils. 

“Pause the video Jarvis.” Wade’s voice shook as he spoke. 

_ “I’ll fill you in on the less than pleasant details. The two worked together to incapacitate Cletus Kasady. Eddie Brock attempted to kill Spiderman when Spiderman was forced to recapture him. Then Spiderman rendered him momentarily paralyzed before backup from the Fantastic Four showed up to imprison the two symbiotes.” _ Jarvis spoke in a clear voice that didn’t console Wade whatsoever.  _ “It appears from other video evidence I located that Spiderman has teamed up with Venom on another account against Carnage… it also appears that Spiderman has not been so lucky in solo missions against Cletus Kasady.” _ Jarvis’s usually robotic voice held a hint of worry to it. 

“Jarvis,” Wade began. There was a hard tone to his voice while it also held a struggled nervousness to it. “I never like looking into personal files, but I do have one question: is it true that Spiderman was at one point attached to a symbiote?” 

There had been rumours. Wade had always brushed them aside, thinking it obscure for the webhead to even  _ try  _ something that reckless. After both Peter and Spiderman refused to share knowledge however, Wade had done a little digging. There was one news paper article he’d found. His favourite friendly neighborhood Spiderman was on the cover, but his suit wasn’t the same. His suit had been monochrome. 

There was a long pause as Jarvis hesitated on Wade’s level of clearance before speaking:

_ “Yes.”  _

 

***

 

Once Wade finally left the Avengers Tower, he was proud of himself for not murdering any of the high and mighty individuals that resided there. He gripped the thumb drive in his hand so tightly he barely registered it might crumble into dust. Inhaling deeply, he slipped it into one of his pouches as he sent a menacing glare at the Tower. 

**Kill, kill, kill, kill,** Yellow chanted in pure rage. 

_ Even if our intentions are good, Spiderman would probably want this ugly mug’s head on a silver platter for killing his comrades.  _ White sounded like he was entertaining Yellows idea, though. 

Inhaling again, Wade tried to calm the shaking of his hands. “I’m going to send the Fantastic Four a big ol’ bouquet, and recommend for their comics to be taken off ‘on hold’ status.” Even the humour he tried for didn’t match the tone of his voice. 

People looked at him terrified as he marched to his safehouse. 

Wade was brimming with fury. He’d gotten Jarvis to transfer all the data onto the thumb drive so he could review them at length when he returned to his safehouse. Jarvis had also agreed to keeping his endeavours a secret, and find a cover story for Stark. When Wade asked Jarvis why the Avengers hadn’t helped at all the only answer he got made his blood boil: 

_ “They feel as if there are ‘bigger fish to fry’ unfortunately. I believe that Carnage is a much larger threat than they like to pretend he is; therefore, I’ll keep your secret Mr. Wilson.”  _

__ Shaking his head to try to focus, Wade maneuvered through the streets. He kept out a watchful eye, now fully aware Carnage was watching him. The  _ thing  _ could be anywhere, preparing an attack. Wade had to do the same. 

Once inside his home, Wade locked the door and quickly secured the run down apartment. He wondered if he should rent a more secure suite as he had the money, but he doubted that would do anything to hinder the symbiote. The thing had broken out of maximum security prisons, but Wade had to admit they were shit prisons. If every other villain broke out every week, then S.H.I.E.L.D really needed to figure out how to run a prison for the insane and insanely powerful. 

_ No sign of carrot top,  _ White commented once Wade had cleared his apartment twice. 

“Not yet, anyways,” Wade grunted. 

He made quick work of collecting an array of grenades, small bombs, guns, the works. As he packed them into three separate hello kitty bags, his thoughts drifted to the webhead. All he could see was the look of horror on the man’s masked face when he’d realized who they were dealing with. He’d looked smaller, more naive. It was as if looking at the younger teenager he’d met all those years ago in a suit that didn’t fit quite right. It reminded Wade just how young and ignorant Spiderman was to the world. He wasn’t a war hardened man like Wade was, he was just a kid who had powers forced upon him and wanted to do good by them. 

Worry was quickly eating at him, so he pulled out his phone:

_ Please just tell me you’re not dead. _

He sat on his sofa, watching his phone on his coffee table. It only took a few moments for the screen to light up while it buzzed softly. 

_ I’m alive.  _

 

***

 

After Peter sent the text, he turned back to the task at hand.

Breaking into a maximum supervillain holding prison probably wasn’t the smartest idea, Peter had to admit that. Doing so while attempting to ask a man attached to a symbiote with a vendetta against you that you betrayed after asking the same favour years previous was probably worse. Worst outcome that could come of this was Peter would be considered having gone rogue by breaking a villain out of prison, and the Avengers would try to take him down. Did that stop Peter? Stupidly, no. 

Even more stupid was the fact that he broke into the prison so  _ easily.  _

__ _ No wonder none of these guys stay in prison long,  _ Peter thought bitterly. 

It was easy enough to take out the cameras along the way as well as avoid the guards. He hid in the air vents when necessary, but was able to move around relatively easily. He wanted to get in and out without anyone knowing it was Spiderman who was playing prison break. As he maneuvered he also noticed certain key cards unlocked certain doors. It wasn’t hard to guess he needed the highest level of clearance to get into a cell with someone as dangerous as Venom. Thankfully he had ‘borrowed’ some Stark tech and made a few adjustments to it. While when he was younger the beatings from Flash that came along with being a nerd made his life hell, he was sure glad he had joined the robotics club over football. 

He was also grateful that the cells were made with clear and a nearly indestructible glass like substance. It was nice to know that Venom wouldn't rush through the glass like paper to strangle him.

_ Okay, you got this,  _ Peter encouraged as he made his way over the ceilings. He was careful to avoid as many cameras as possible to avoid someone noticing one of them was offline. Peter had also changed the chemical makeup of his webbing for the cameras so it wouldn’t be traced back to him. It appeared like the Venom symbiote to give the illusion Eddie Brock had broken himself out before it broke down into dust. 

As he maneuvered across the halls, he thought of Wade. 

He hoped he’d get to Carnage before the merc did. Peter didn’t know what he would do if something happened to Wade. While Wade appeared invincible on the outside, he wasn’t mentally. He knew of a few instances where the man’s memories of Weapon X had rendered him useless, nearly lifeless. If Carnage caught him and tortured him… Peter shivered violently at the thought. He would do  _ anything  _ to save the scarred man. His mind flashed to Carnage’s message in blood across the roof. Peter paused to breathe deeply while squeezing his eyes shut as nausea overtook him. He wasn’t going to allow what happened to Gwen to ever happen to anyone again, even if it killed him. And at this rate, it just might. 

Finally, after what seemed like years, Peter found it. He was in cell block S, deep within the prison. 

Venoms cell was far down the corridor, only accessible by a padlock that required the keycard, retina scan, and a complex code system similar to what he’d seen at Oscorp all those years ago. Or, in Peter’s case, it involved illegal technology Stark would get in huge trouble for creating. A part of Peter hoped this would come and bite Tony in the ass. 

Jumping down, Peter quickly placed the small metal button like object against the control panel. The button immediately emitted a hologram of coding that Peter was quick to begin breaking down. It took mere minutes for the door to make a noise of release as he smirked in triumph. 

“Hacker voice, I’m in,” Peter snickered to himself. A part of him was upset Wade wasn’t around to hear the lame joke. 

Carefully, Peter entered the enclosed area. He noticed the clear impenetrable wall that separated himself and the villain before him. The cage let off a constant stream of sonic noise that made the skin on the man before him crawl, literally. A collar also was placed around his neck as a preventative measure in case the prison was to suddenly be overridden. He was glad for Richards’ design, and was even more glad that he’d slipped all the information on the cell and collar to Peter when Venom had last been put away. While the Fantastic Four would prefer they help Spiderman, they knew sometimes they weren’t enough. Even though that infuriated Johnny, they’d agreed silently to allow Peter to do what needed to be done. 

“Eddie,” Peter finally called after a long moment of silence. 

The man who currently had his back to the door flinched. A mass of blackness rippled over his skin before being forced back within him. “You gotta be fucking kidding me.” 

“Wish I was,” Peter admitted. He took a few careful steps towards the cell wall. 

“I’m going to tear you limb from limb,” the man snapped. His skin crawled more fiercely than before. 

Peter scoffed. “Be original at least. You know how many times I’ve been told that?” After a long pause that was only interrupted by a small growl, Peter took another step. He could feel the warmth of the shield near him. The constant energy it exserted created a heat to emit from it. “It’s Carnage.” 

A low chuckle was expelled from the man before him. It grew to near hysterics before it stopped abruptly. “Of course it is.” The man sounded somewhat apologetic. 

Peter’s hard gaze softened slightly. While he knew Venom was a murderous, crazed shell of a man, he was still a man. He had tried many times to be an anti-hero of sorts rather than a villain. Carnage was a constant reminder of his mistakes. “I have a proposition.” 

That made another dark laugh sound from the man. “What? ‘Please help me defeat Carnage just so I can put you back in this hellhole’?”

The accusation in his voice made Peter wince. “You know I had to do that, Eddie. You weren’t capable of being who you wanted to be at the time.”

“And I am now, when it’s convenient?” The venom in his voice burned at Peter. Eddie wore his alter ego’s name with pride. 

A sigh broke from Peter’s lips. “I get it, okay? I’m flawed at best. I can’t guarantee you anything, but maybe an improved reputation. I’ve seen crazed killers turn into  _ heros _ .” Images of Wade flashed in Peter’s mind, the man’s scarred crooked smile and changed morals. “I’ve become more open to… change than before.” 

Eddie hummed non committedly before shivering as more thick darkness rippled across his skin. “And how do you know I won’t just try to kill you?” 

Peter shrugged, even though Eddie couldn’t see it. “I’d rather die trying to take Carnage down than let more innocent people die.” 

That seemed to make Eddie’s stature change. “He’s killing a lot?” 

“Not a lot, yet,” Peter murmured, looking down. “I’m not sure what he’s doing. All I know is he’s planning something, and it’s making me…” A long pause stretched as he tried to think of a way to describe how he felt. “I’m becoming an easy target.” 

When Peter looked up, Eddie was standing. He was facing the masked hero with a look of determination on his face. He looked older, more worn that the last time Spiderman had faced him. A scruff of facial hair lined his jaw while large bags resided under his eyes. Peter could see the Venom symbiote giddly crawling across his skin. He had to focus on breathing as to not freak out, remembering when that  _ thing  _ forcefully merged with him and made him into someone he wasn’t. 

“I’ve been locked up long enough to… understand you. Anne helped me realize before she… it took a long time to understand what she tried to tell me.” 

They were silent for a long moment. 

“I’m sorry,” Peter finally said. “For what happened to Anne.” 

Eddie looked down at the ripple of black that bled from his skin. “I’m sorry, too.” 

 

***

 

It was past nightfall when Wade finally couldn’t take it anymore. Spiderman hadn’t answered any more of his messages, and Wade was growing worried. He needed to find out where Spiderman was, and he needed to stop the webhead before he got himself killed. Only problem was he didn’t know where to find him, but he knew someone who did. 

So, Wade currently found himself outside Peter Parker’s apartment sweating like a rotisserie chicken. When he’d last talked to the college student nearly three days prior, it had ended in Peter practically slamming the door on his face. While Wade had gotten over it, he doubted Peter had. Wade agreed with himself that if Peter wanted to throw a punch at him when he saw him he’d allow it, so long as it wasn’t aimed at the jewels. He didn’t want to turn into the Carnage drawing that was in his warehouse. 

_ Carnage.  _ The name made Wade’s shoulders tense and his jaw clench tightly. 

Deadpool tried the intercom a few times, but there was no answer. It was odd, considering it was later at night, and the kid should be up studying for midterms or some bullshit like that. It wasn’t like he could see Wade, since the building was far from having a security system let alone camera interfaces. 

**We could always use the fire escape,** Yellow suggested. **Peter might be in the shower. Then, we can see the goodies when he gets out.**

“I do have morals,” Wade muttered before going to the side of the building. 

_ And yet here you are,  _ White commented as Wade lifted himself onto the fire escape. 

“His lights are off,” Wade said irritably. “I may be a perv, but I’m not a  _ pervert. _ ” 

**Are they any different?** Yellow sounded thoughtful. 

Wade ignored them. 

Carefully he maneuvered up the metal stairs until he was four stories high. Once he landed on the fire escape that was attached to Peter’s suite, he glanced inside. The area was dark with the only light coming from the stove clock. Without another thought, Wade lifted the window open -  _ wow reckless much -  _ before entering the building. The carpet was freshly vacuumed and the scent of vanilla filled the space from a wax candle that had been burning hours before. Photos lined the walls, some of people while others were cleary photos he’d taken for aesthetic purposes. 

The room was small, a tiny kitchen attached to the space. There were two doors that Wade guessed led to the bathroom and bedroom, while a little sliding closet door separated them. It was propped open slightly, showing an array of towels and sheets. There were random shirts and a hoodie draped over the sofa and floor as well as a few dishes in the sink. 

“Kid needs to lock his window,” Wade muttered as he wandered around. He glanced at a shelf that held an array of photos. 

There were a lot of photos of an older couple, roughly in their fifties. He understood them to be his aunt and uncle he talked highly of. His eyes also landed on a few photos of a boy with blonde styled hair and an exhausted expression, but smiled fondly at the camera. Wade moved to the next and saw a photo of a blonde woman. She was smiling brightly at the camera, draped in a lab coat while looking just as fond as the boy in the previous photo. There was another photo of a girl with apple red hair, sipping a coffee while scoffing at the camera with the hint of a blush to her cheeks. 

The three people repeated over the course of photos, some including Peter, and one including all four of them. Peter looked around nineteen in the photo. After that, no photos of the blonde girl or boy appeared, only aging photos of Peter and the red haired girl. 

“Wonder what happened,” Wade said in curiosity. 

Moving on, Wade wandered to the bedroom door. Perhaps Peter was asleep. While he knew the kid would probably throw a fit and scream, he hoped he’d also listen. Peter had a direct link to Spiderman, and clearly knew more than he let on about the masked hero. Wade hoped that once he explained the situation, Peter would agree to help him. He doubted the boy would be okay with the idea of Spiderman getting himself killed. The idea made Wade sick. 

“Peter?” Wade called as he pushed open the door. 

A worried feeling settled in his stomach as he noticed the empty room. A nearly empty hamper of clothing rested at the foot of the messy bed. A few more photos littered the walls here, many of them clearly professional. It was clear the boy wanted to surround himself with his best aesthetic works. A few different cameras rested on the desk against the wall, as well as an array of tech tools. Wade furrowed his brows at the odd circular object that was attached to a familiar canister. He’d seen something like that before. 

Shaking his head, Wade glanced around. It looked like Peter hadn’t been home at all in the past day. The clothing he’d worn the last day he had seen him were still in a heap at the side of his bed. Something was wrong, there was no way Peter was anywhere else.  _ He should be here _ , Wade thought in a panic. 

As Wade went to leave to find the college student, he noticed something on the bedside table. It was placed delicately, in view of Peter while he drifted off to sleep. Care was given into its placement among all the other photo’s throughout the apartment. This one was was special to Peter. This one Wade had seen before. 

_ Is that…  _ White began. 

Carefully, Wade moved closer. Slowly, as if the it would vanish, he leaned over and lifted the small polaroid in his fingers. 

**Maybe they’re roomies?!** Yellow suggested, nearly hysteric. 

Wade’s heart skipped a beat as his eyes roamed the photo. 

_ There’s only one bed, maybe they’re dating?!  _ White offered, also sounding crazed. 

Wade could feel his eyes widen as he looked at the photo. He couldn’t breathe as he took in what he was seeing. His heart was racing a mile a minute as he slowly stumbled to sit on the bed. 

**There’s no way, right?! There is no way!**

_ No way, absolutely no way! _

“Shut up,” Wade ordered in a whisper. 

He was in shock. He couldn’t keep his eyes off what he was seeing, what his brain was processing. All he could see was that familiar blue and red suit, pressed against him tightly in the photo. The photo he’d seen a masked hero holding fondly, with a far off look to his features. 

How had he not seen it before? There were so many similarities. The voice, the attitude, the sarcasm, the  _ attraction.  _ God the attraction! It was instantaneous and fast moving like a tornado. It had swept Wade up and taken him to a different world. His heart had raced everytime Peter had smiled, laughed, pouted, done  _ anything.  _ God, Wade had fallen in love with him so quickly he should have seen the signs. He should have seen where else he’d seen that love, that love that was wrapped in red and blue spandex with the lightest laugh. 

Wade couldn’t believe what he was seeing, yet it all fit properly like a puzzle he hadn’t experienced since Vanessa. A puzzle he now realized was very close to falling apart if he didn’t do something because god dammit it:

“Peter is Spiderman... Peter Parker is Spiderman.” 

 

***

 

“Well, when do you think they’ll get here?” 

The creak of the elevator shaft sounded as they descended down two floors. Blood still coated the small square space in a now dirty dried colour. The man kicked the stray eyeball that still resided in the elevator as if it was a pebble. It worked well as a bouncy balls as it hit the wall and jumped back to him. 

_ Ssssoon… I want them here sssssoon… _

__ “Soon, darling,” Cletus giggled menacingly. “Oh I’m so excited!” he exclaimed as the elevator opened to the large room below the surface. He was vibrating at the grotesque thoughts that conjured in his mind. 

The room was concrete walls and floors, a simple area that was hardly liveable set up. A TV was stationed against the wall in front of a trashed couch. The metal cylinder he’d been transported in was off to the side. Numerous boards filled with patrol routes, school routes, and photos filled up nearly two thirds of the room. A picture of Spiderman hung front the cork with numerous nails embedded in his head. The bloodied doll he’d retrieved all that time ago sat quietly on the couch, soaked with the blood of a family of four. Oh, what a wonderful moment that had been. 

He smirked wildly as he moved to rested on the gross, old sofa in the room. The symbiote currently rested within his skin, allowing his human appearance to be seen. While running his hands through his hair, he turned on the TV that was in the living quarters. Security footage appeared on the screen in a slightly grainy quality. With a smirk, he pressed play on the screen while flicking at the Spiderman plushie’s head. 

The images of Spiderman finding his little display previously lit up the screen. The security footage made him tremble. He watched with giddy excitement as the man fell to his knees and clearly showed signs of extreme emotional stress.  

“It’s almost as good as reliving murders,” Cletus sighed dreamily. The symbiote agreed with its hissing voice. 

He smirked wider at the second man’s appearance, and his clear abandonment of rationality. The two men were clearly distressed, ignoring all their sophistication for basic instincts. He watched on as Deadpool realized who had set up the entire stunt. He was cackling like a madman as he watched the two  _ attack  _ each other. They were so delirious due to their stress that they fought each other instead of him! It was maddingly hilarious! 

“And he comes in with the swing, and boom! Out of the park!” Carnage giggled as Spiderman knocked Deadpool unconscious. He then sighed dramatically. “Oh I wish he’d just shot the annoying Spiderman. Would have made our soon to be showdown easier, but not nearly as fun. However, that right hook sure will make his right shoulder an easy target.” Cletus smiled wider as he lifted the stuffed doll in his hands. “And Deadpool will know who to blame when Spiderman is dropped dead on his doorstep!” 

Cletus cackled manically as the symbiote formed around his hand to form a knife. He stabbed the red solid knife into the plushie’s head in amused. 

“We’ll make sure it lasts though,” he sighed dreamily before standing and tossing the doll back onto the sofa. It was riddled with holes and sewed in multiple places. “Oh no, nothing quick, Spiderman needs the pampered treatment.” Cletus grinned as he rounded the patched couch to stand behind it. The screen moved forward as Deadpool twitched on the ground. 

_ Ssssslow, pain,  _ the symibote hissed as it danced across the flesh of the serial killer.

Cletus’ eyes turned mad with joy. “So much pain, don’t you worry! Not to mention what we’ll do to Daddy dearest.” Cletus tone darkened as he thought of his father symbiote. His eyes narrowed dangerously as he gripped the back of the sofa so harshly the wood frame snapped. “The lot of them, they’ll wish they’d never been born. We’ll finally destroy that poor excuse of a symbiote. The best part will be seeing Deadpool’s face when he realizes we killed the one he’s loved for years.” Carnage convulsed as the symbiote crawled across his skin. “And Spiderman’s face when he realizes Deadpool will face an eternity of torture. I’m so excited to stab that man like a hung pig.” 

_ Sssstab, ssstab. _

Kasady hummed at the thought, relishing in the sight behind his eyelids. So much red. 

_ But what of the avengersss? _

__ Cletus just smirked. “ _ You can't kill Chaos. And you can't keep it locked up for long _ .” As he spoke, his eyes wandered to the long corridor to his right. “Besides, it’s best to revel in the small things. Let’s live for the here and now! Get excited baby!” 

Maneuvering past the crushed sofa, he wandered down a hall and to a solid metal door. A smirk dawned on his lips as he swung open the door. It led into a room that was sterile like a hospital.  A metal slab rested in the centre of the room, equipped with strong bindings. An array of weaponry ranging from kitchen knives, to branding tools, to means of suffocation lined the walls. It was a playhouse for the bad kind of sociopaths. A grin nearly tore at Cletus’ face while the symbiote rippled across his skin excitedly. 

“Hope you’re just as excited to live for the  _ moment _ , Peter Parker.”  

 

***

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not 100% in love with how this turned out, but like 90% is decent enough. Sorry if it feels choppy, but a lot of stuff needed to happen this chapter to get the next chapter set up and rolling.  
> Wow, a lot happened this chapter. Its only gunna get worse from here, ya'll got another chapter of straight up angst that'll be 100x worse than this.  
> So exciting!  
> What do you all think? What do you think is gunna happen?  
> Tell me what you thought, validate this lesbian!  
> Also Wade is singing "Peach" by "The Front Bottoms" and it'll be reoccurring. That song just does things to my heart, and I know Wade would sign that to Peter.  
> Next chapter will come sooner, as I'm extremely excited for the showdown to come!  
> Anyone like the Deadpool: Suicide Kings references? 
> 
> Find me @  
> louiswt.tumblr.com


	4. ACT IV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wade needs to find Peter before something terrible happens. But, unfortunately, for the first time he might be too late.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "blood loss in a bathroom stall, a southern girl with a scarlet drawl"
> 
>  
> 
> sorry for the wait (this chapter is 11.6k so hopefully that makes up for my shitty updating system)

***

 

CHAPTER FOUR

 

Wade sat on Peter’s - no  _ Spidey’s -  _ bed in shock. The polaroid between his fingers didn’t vanish, the room didn’t fall apart like cardboard walls, Ashton Kutcher didn’t appear with a camera crew. No, this was all very real and Wade’s brain refused to compute this information. 

The moon shone through the thin transparent blinds to illuminate the room that represented the clash of two identities into one person. Wade could see the thick textbooks stacked on the light wooden desk right beside newly designed web shooters. The walls were lined with photos paper clipped  to string across the walls and roof. The photographs were from the tops of skyscrapers and bridges that made Wade think he could almost feel the cool breeze whipping past him. It was Peter Parker and it was Spiderman all in one. 

The boxes had talked so fast and so quick they had exhausted themselves. All Wade could hear now was the sound of traffic below and the hum of the air conditioner. 

“Holy shit biscuits,” Wade muttered as he rubbed a gloved hand over his face. He pulled the mask off his head to run his hands over his scalp, the polaroid resting on his lap. “This is a bigger shock than the  _ Heartmates  _ plotline.” 

Yellow and White made incoherent sounds of agreement. 

Wade placed the photo back in its original position delicately before he stood on wobbly legs. He rubbed his eyes with his forefinger and thumb as his mind tried to come up with possibilities as to where the webslinger would be. This was his home, so he’d have to return to it eventually, right? Granted, he also might have assumed Wade would stop by which meant he could be camping out somewhere. But, if he knew Wade would come looking to Peter for help he wouldn’t have left out that photo or the webshooters. 

“He could be patrolling,” Wade thought aloud as he stumbled into the living room to check for signs of life. The apartment smelt like Peter’s laundry detergent and vanilla sticks, something Wade couldn’t help notice. He also noticed the stovetops were cold, the candle was completely hardened, and there was no sign Peter had been here since far earlier in the day. 

Quickly, at the panic of realizing what that could mean for Peter, Wade entered  _ Deadpool  _ mode. But, a part of Wade worried over Peter. He wondered just how much the younger man must have freaked out the moment Wade unconsciously wandered into his secret life. The younger man must have been petrified. Wade had seen him when the Avengers had pestered him for his identity. He could practically feel the anxiety seeping out of the young hero. So, why had Peter not shaken Wade off the moment he saw him? Or all the times Wade had given him to run away thereafter? Wade identity was no secret, but he did have a few skeletons in his closet that were just as big a secret as Spiderman’s true identity. If anyone had found out about  _ her  _ again he would have had a meltdown. Why was Wade any different than any other villain finding out Spiderman’s identity? The thought it might mean  _ something  _ made Wade’s heart flutter for a moment. 

Shaking his head, Wade tried to focus. For now he had to act like Peter was a target. He needed to follow and track any signs that would lead him to the younger man. It was hard, however. Everytime Wade tried to concentrate his mind would reel with the exposed identity that surrounded him. 

_ Check his computer,  _ White suggested calmly. 

That snapped Wade out of his current mantra of  _ Peter is Spidey, Peter is Spidey. _ “You sure changed toned,” Wade commented as he noticed the laptop on the coffee table. 

**Just masking gobsmacked shock with fake confidence,** Yellow replied with a far off tone to their voice. Yellow was clearly still astonished. 

_ Congrats, you know big words _ , White sneered. 

Wade felt the same as the two baffled voices. Shaking his head, he quickly pulled up the laptop and was met with a password. While he could decrypt the password quickly, he guessed he’d be able to guess it just as simply. He tried a handful of passcodes: Peter’s aunts name, the place he worked, his favourite class, all stuff Wade hadn’t realized he’d come to know about the college student. Just as Wade went to just use a decryption program with his phone, an idea popped into his head. 

_ Spiderman _

__ Wade chuckled as the screen loaded the desktop. “Spidey you self obsessed  _ nerd. _ ” 

The chuckle quickly stifled as he saw all the coding and documents that popped up on the screen that  _ clearly  _ belonged to S.H.I.E.L.D. Security camera live footage played on the screen and Wade watched as a guard walked down a long hall. His eyes narrowed dangerously. He  _ knew  _ this place. 

“What are you doing checking out  _ The Vault _ ,” Wade said with a frown. 

He moved from the cameras to the coding, and quickly recognized it as a decoding of Stark Tech. What it was, he couldn’t tell as the file was named  _ Model 3.18.  _ A part of him wanted to head back to Stark Tower and ask Jarvis, but he wasn’t sure if the A.I. would like the fact Peter had stolen from the Batman of the universe. Turning back to the cameras, Wade flicked through them until he came across an abnormality. 

The screen was black. He frowned deeply before switching off then back onto the camera. Before Wade could flick back and forth again, the blackness appeared to  _ dissolve _ off the screen. 

Quickly, Wade grabbed a pen and notebook off the coffee table and labeled the camera that had ‘malfunctioned’. He turned to the camera further down the hall and noticed the same substance blocking out the screen. Without a second thought he followed the cameras, wrote their labels, and drew a diagram of the halls. He hadn’t even followed the camera’s half way out of the prison before he had an entire diagram from memory. 

“Guess the visits to  _ The Vault  _ actually had worth,” Wade hummed. He looked over the diagram while trying to keep ahead of the black cameras. Unfortunately he didn’t see any sign of who was doing this before the camera was offline. “What were you monitoring?” Wade asked quietly as he gave up following the culprit. Instead, he backtracked. 

He followed the camera’s that still had a small residue of the substance until he was at a meeting point from where the entity had escaped. The door was thick steel that was meant to be sealed, signalling that whoever was behind it would have been qualified for  _ The Raft  _ if it still existed. 

Suddenly, Agents were swarming into the room and through the halls of the facility. Alarms blared, signalling the guards had noticed the missing prisoner. Wade turned on the volume to the camera and listened as a robotic female voice called for a team to begin a search outside the compound. The prisoner had officially escaped. 

Wade listened for another ten minutes and watched four men now standing post at the entrance to the fourth floor. Men in suits entered the doors to the off limits area and then into the cell. The camera to the cell was blocked out by tape and the audio cut, signalling whatever was happening inside was high risk information. 

The camera outside the cell appeared to still be in operation, and there was a plaque outside the door. Words were carved into it, signaling the cells occupant. 

Just before Wade could zoom and depixelize the screen to see the cell’s owner, his phone rang loudly. 

Without thought, Wade grabbed the phone and pressed the  _ accept  _ icon. “Spidey?” Wade greeted hopefully as he stood from the sofa. 

“Wade Wilson.” 

Wade huffed in disappointment as he glanced back to the computer. Two men were messing with the lock system, clearly confused how it had opened without force. “Hey Captain Hook, how’re you doing?” 

The voice sighed angrily at the comment. “Captain Hook didn’t wear an eyepatch, Wilson.” 

Wade smirked at that, enjoying getting a rise out of the asshole who ran the worst agent headquarters in the world. How many times had they been infiltrated? “Fine, Evil Morty, what do you want?” 

Another long, angry sigh came from the phone. “Wilson, we need you for a mission. It will be a recapture mission, but if you need to harm the target we have no qualms about it.” 

At that, Wade glanced at the computer. “Someone escaped  _ The Vault. _ ” If they were contacting him no more than fifteen minutes after confirming an escape it didn’t mean anything good.

“It doesn’t happen as often as you all think,” Fury replied scornfully. 

“Yeah, yeah, tell that to the numerous superheroes with recurring villains. See, I unalived mine, makes it a lot easier.” As he spoke, he closed the laptop and wandered to the window of the suite. Why was Spiderman monitoring  _ The Vault  _ when he had said he was going after Carnage? And why was Fury calling Deadpool about the escapee? He couldn’t possibly know Wade had watched the entire episode of Prison Break from the privacy of Spiderman’s home. “You know, a dead crab can’t pinch you. An alive crab? Whether you’re talking about the animal or the genital visitor, they’re a lot harder to manage.” 

“Shut up,” Fury ordered. Wade pouted at the rude tone. They were about to ask for his help for god's sake, they could at  _ least  _ humour him. 

He moved to sit on the fire escape and wondered how often Peter had rested here after a mission. How many times had he crawled through that window all beaten up, just to wake up the next morning and try to live as a normal college student? His brain was malfunctioning from all the confusing things hitting him at once. 

“I’ll give you the coordinates. Go to the location and capture the creature there.” Wade felt his phone buzz against his ear, signalling he’d received the longitude and latitude. 

“If you know where this guy is going to be, why bother sending  _ me  _ to find him?” Wade inquired as he tried to figure out who this person was Spidey was monitoring, and why they contacted  _ him.  _

“We won’t regenerate if he kills us.” 

_ Oh. _

 

***

 

“You stole a Fantastic Four jet?” Eddie asked in irritation about twenty minutes out of Colorado. 

“What? Did you expect us to just run across the Rocky Mountains without getting caught? All the way to New York?” Peter asked with a roll of his eyes as he enabled the autopilot. “Besides, they think of me as part of their superfamily. They could care less if I  _ borrow  _ a jet.” 

Eddie scoffed as he scratched under the cuffs surrounding his wrists. They let off heat and a low noise that prevented the symbiote from taking over Eddie’s body. Peter wasn’t an idiot, he’d been betrayed by the man before. He wasn’t about to get himself killed somewhere over Kansas. 

Without much worry, Peter sat down across from Eddie while the view of the sky projected through the jet window. The sky was dark, littered with visions of stars and the overhanging moon. The cloaking device over the jet made them invisible from the ground, and from any S.H.I.E.L.D tech. Adrenaline was rushing through Peter, the sound of his rushing blood roaring in his ears. He was going to be in  _ so much shit.  _

__ His phone buzzed again in the pocket of his suit. Every part of him wanted to call Wade, but he worried the man would track him. He felt nauseous because every time he blinked he saw Wade limply falling to the ground. He could still hear the sickening crack from the door slamming against the merc’s skull. Where was Wade now, he wondered? Probably running around the entire expansion of New York looking for him. 

“You going to answer that or are we just going to be annoyed every five seconds?” Eddie complained as he kicked his feet up. He stretched his arms over his head and the muscles in his shoulders popped. 

“Unless you want the world's most infamous mercenary tracking us, we’ll ignore it,” Peter suggested. 

Eddie smirked at that. “You got Deadpool after you on top of Carnage? Good job, you’re going to die before you hit thirty.” 

Peter glared at the symbiote host. “He’s not after me, he’s making sure I’m not currently being torn apart by Carnage.” Eddie quirked his brow at that, and Peter sighed. “He hates Carnage. Not sure what their history is, but, if it's anything like ours, I can see why he doesn’t want anyone near Kasady.” 

Eddie hummed in agreement. “He doesn’t need to worry. I’m wiser, more thoughtful, I  _ know  _ symbiotes inside and out. Kasady is as good as dead the next time I see him.” The darkness in Eddie’s eyes nearly made Peter shiver. “Venom brought this poor excuse of an offspring into the world, and we’ll be sure to take it out.” 

Peter didn’t say anything to that. He didn’t want to kill anyone, but Kasady made Peter rethink his entire moral code. Instead of dwelling on the moral battle that built in his chest, he remembered Carnage’s message. 

“He left me a note,” Peter said as he pulled out the slip of paper hidden in his suit.

Eddie took the note with his cuffed hands. Peter watched as his eyes scanned the note, widening before narrowing. “He really knows your weak spots,” he commented. “He expected you to break me out as well.” 

Peter shrugged at the statement. “He knew there was nothing else I could do.” 

At his words, Eddie glanced up to the young man. “You won’t let Deadpool go after him. Isn’t that stupid? Deadpool can’t die.” Eddie clearly was puzzled, and thought Spiderman had somehow lost his sense of intelligence. 

A sad smirk formed on Peter’s lips. “That’s his mentality too. Just because someone can’t die doesn’t mean they can’t  _ feel  _ pain.” His recurring nightmares forced themselves to the forefront of his mind as he spoke. 

“And you don’t think your boyfriend or whatever won’t feel  _ pain  _ when you die?” Eddie asked incredulously. A thin layer of anger was visible in the glint of his eyes. 

“He’s not my boyfriend,” Peter cut in quickly. Once again, he was so thankful for his mask, and not so much for his painful blushing. Eddie’s words also cut deep. “I’m not planning on dying yet.” He tried to make his voice sound final, but it shook slightly. 

Eddie sat back in his seat, eyes on the masked hero. “If there’s anything I know for a fact, it's this: I would rather be tortured for a century just for Anne to still be here than live the life I’ve been dealt.”

They were both silent after that. The air was thick with tension, but Eddie slowly eased off the anger that was building in his eyes. Peter watched as the man leaned back and had a far away look in his eyes. He hadn’t been able to grieve or get closure. He couldn’t even attend the funeral. The symbiote didn’t allow for Eddie to express the human emotions that weren’t meant to be bottled up, and instead focused all the anger onto Spiderman for a time. Trying to kill a college kid was no way to grieve. 

Due to Eddie’s harsh words, Peter caved and glanced at his phone. 

_ Spidey, we need to talk.  _

__ _ Answer me.  _

__ _ What is going on? Are you okay?  _

__ _ Please, just let me know you’re still alive.  _

__ _ We need to talk. _

__ _ I’m not mad about the door thing, please just call me.  _

__ Peter scrolled through the messages and paused on one, his heart aching. 

_ Please be okay, baby boy.  _

__ There was a further spewing of messages that Peter read through as they flew closer to New York. The impending battle weighed on Peter, and made his gut heavy with worry. He glanced to Eddie who was stone faced, watching the clouds as they flew by. Like Eddie had implied, knowing Carnage, this could be Spiderman’s last fight. Peter felt his eyes water as he realized the last time he would possibly see Wade was him lying limply on a rooftop with blood all around him in threatening cursive. The last thing Wade would remember was Peter near hysterics, spewing angry words, and fighting with the man. 

No, he wouldn’t remember Peter, he would remember  _ Spiderman.  _ Wade would never see Peter on Tuesday at 3:00am, their unspoken scheduled meeting time. They wouldn’t share food late at night, each time at a different themed restaurant. There would be no more jokes, and puns, and Wade telling Peter how pretty he was. Peter would never see those beautiful scarred lips again. He’d never be able to witness the day Wade finally removed his mask. The possibility of losing all of this made tears soak into the fabric of his mask. Wade would possibly never know what he had meant to Spiderman, what he’d mean to  _ Peter Parker.  _

__ More tears were soaking Peter’s mask, and he was grateful Eddie didn’t do more than glance at him before moving to the rear of the jet to give him privacy. Once Eddie had moved, Peter removed the damp mask to allow the tears to flow more freely. He didn’t like to cry, but the thought of never seeing Wade again was breaking him. The idea that he’d never hear Wade’s stupid jokes, his loud obnoxious laugh, his declarations of love that always seemed too  _ genuine _ , it torn a hole in Peter’s chest. He knew this feeling, he’d felt it when he’d gone into impossible missions before. Back when he had someone waiting for him back in his shitty apartment, he’d felt this. In the beginning it had been Harry, then Gwen, then Mary Jane. Now, it was a merc with an all-consuming embrace that instantly calmed Peter, a merc that demanded attention and made shitty puns, a merc that had turned out to mean far more than he should have to Peter. 

After a long inhale, Peter turned off his phone, but not before sending one last hopeful text. 

_ I’ll be okay Wade. I have something to tell you after this is all over.  _

__

***

 

The text Wade received before boarding a S.H.I.E.L.D issued jet did nothing to calm his worry. He had quickly tried to call the spider back, but it had gone straight to voicemail.  _ I have something to tell you after this is all over.  _ It didn’t sound like a promise, it sounded like an ‘if I make it out alive’ kind of promise. It reminded Wade of his poor excuse of a goodbye to Vanessa before everything went to shit. Spiderman was not allowed to die when there was so much Wade still had to tell him. Peter was his goddamn missing puzzle piece, and he wasn’t about to lose that again. 

As the jet took off, Wade sat in constant fear as the pilot took them south. He had tried to refuse Fury’s order, but the correlation between the escape and Spiderman’s computer was too important to ignore. It clearly meant something to the Carnage situation, but Wade didn’t know how. The agents had refused to give him much in the way of information which was ridiculous. How was Wade supposed to attack an enemy if he didn’t know who it was? 

“At least tell me where the fuck we’re going,” Wade complained as he kicked the metal wall of the jet. He was too anxious to sit anymore. 

“A Caribbean island,” the pilot finally caved. He had listened to Wade ramble about how much he hated the new Taylor Swift song for an hour straight, and was ready to parachute from the plane himself. Wade tended to ramble some stupid shit when he was emotionally compromised. 

**Emotionally compromised Spock is way better than you,** Yellow threw in. 

_ Oh that fight on the bridge? Spock choking Kirk? Kinky,  _ White chimed. 

“Can we not talk about slash fic in the middle of a serious, totally real and not taking place in a slash fic, mission?” Wade scoffed as he moved to lean over the pilot who was staring at him in utter confusion. 

**It wasn’t slash, it was alternate universe,** Yellow grumbled. 

Ignoring the voices, Wade pursed his lips as he finally processed what the pilot had said. “What kind of villain does Fury know that would want to hide out on some island? If they're so dangerous wouldn’t they be trying to dominate the world or something? Or are you guys so mean to those guys in there that they need a vacation between taking over the world attempts?” Wade suggested with a smirk. 

The pilot groaned loudly before sighing in relief. “We’re nearly there.” 

The sun had just peeked over the horizon, shining over the blue sea below. Wade watched as little islands came into view, signalling they were indeed in the tropics. He had to admit, even though he’d traveled the world ten times over, the view was still gorgeous. 

“Which island am I aiming for? Oh, and don’t you worry, I have good aim,” Wade joked as he thrusted his crotch obscenely. 

The man sighed in distaste. 

**Spidey would have laughed,** Yellow muttered sourly. 

_ No, he would have groaned and called us an idiot,  _ White countered. 

**While giggling,** Yellow added.  **Damn, I miss that giggle,** Yellow said dreamily. 

“Focus,” Wade told the voices as he glanced to the pilot. 

The man looked confused before remembering  _ who  _ he was talking to. “That island there,” the pilot said while motioning to a monitor. 

Wade looked over the island shape to not confuse it, and noticed they were approaching it quickly. “So, what do I do? Just hop down, lose an arm and a leg, catch the bad guy or gal, then get the key to the city when I get home?” 

The pilot looked exhausted. Wade was offended, he was a party to be around. “Once you restrain him another jet in the vicinity will drop equipment and men to lock him in a cage that will hold him. Mission complete. You’ll also have to give us a whole report on anything he tells you, especially if he brags on how the hell he got out of  _ The Vault. _ ” 

“I hate paperwork,” Wade stated as he grabbed a parachute that hung on the wall. The pilot looked ready to blow either his or Wade’s brains out. “Calm down man, I got it,” he said with a deep sigh as he went to the opening back of the jet. He put a communicator in his ear, and turned it on. “Now, will one of you poorly dressed agents tell me who I’m dealing with?” Wade inquired as he readied for the signal. 

Suddenly, Fury’s voice sounded over the communicator. “Jump.” 

Wade groaned, but did as he was told. As he rocketed towards the island he was fast approaching, he asked again. “Whom am i dealing with, dear father of mine?” 

Fury grunted irritably before speaking. “We had to make sure you wouldn’t back out, so we needed you to jump first.” 

“Oh, that’s real comforting,” Wade snorted. “Unless you are trying to get me to jump back into a Weapon X lab, I’ll be fine. Oh, and if you all tried that bullshit, I would personally blow your brains out. My new moral code be damned.” His voice held a joking tone, but it was clear he wasn’t fucking around. It wasn’t a stunt he would put past S.H.I.E.L.D. 

Another grunt came over the mic. “I don’t appreciate being threatened, Wilson.” 

“I don’t appreciate someone who can’t clear their throat,” he retorted. Wade also noticed he was nearing the altitude to pull his chute. “Details please, Major Bludd.” 

There was a small pause -  _ oh the dramatics,  _ Wade thought bitterly - before Fury cleared his throat. “You’re dealing with something you’ve dealt with before. We know you can take them down, so it was practical to get you involved. Even if you’re reckless, mentally unstable, unfit for the field,  _ murderous, _ ”

“Okay Hamlet, enough of the dramatic monolog.” Wade was ready to go back home and put up a life sized drawing of Fury beside Carnage to use as target practice.

“It’s a criminal known as Eddie Brock, or more formally a symbiote known as Venom.”

And that’s when it all clicked for the merc, a couple hundred feet above an island too far away from New York and a parachute buckle pinching his left nipple. 

Carefully, he controlled his emotions as the boxes screamed all the profanities he wanted to yell into the air rushing past him. He couldn’t signal he knew the fucknut wouldn’t be down there when he landed. If he gave away that he knew that would compromise a stupid freckled kid who was going to get a good ass kicking from the merc.  _ You goddamn stupid, bubble butt, hot, asshole!  _ Wade cursed to himself as he pulled his parachute. 

After taking a moment to order his fraying mental state, Wade spoke. “Well, this is going to be a fucking mess.” 

***

The hall was dark and smelled of mildew. Peter couldn’t see anything and panic was crawling up his throat. Fear chewed apart his stomach as he blindly felt his way through the long corridor. He could hear screams and cries that made him shiver while tears formed in his eyes. They spilled over his lashes as he moved quicker, the sound growing louder and more violent. He was choking on his sobs as he stumbled forward while trying to block out the excruciating sounds of  _ death.  _

__ “Wade! Wade!” Peter screamed as he continued running. 

“Peter!” Wade howled, pain masking everything else in his voice. 

“Wade! I’m coming!” His voice was hoarse as he continued to shout while the painful calls grew loud before growing quiet. Everytime he got close suddenly the sound was distant ahead of him. 

He felt like he was running for hours. Peter’s legs felt like jello, but he kept pushing forward and screaming for Wade. His heart pounded so harshly against his chest it felt like it was crushing his lungs. It felt like he couldn’t take in enough oxygen between his sobs as he ran. 

A bone chilling laugh echoed in the calls that made Peter’s skin crawl. 

_ YOU CAN’T SAVE ANYONE _

__ “Shut up!” Peter begged as he continued forward. He had to get to Wade before it was too late. 

Suddenly Peter was flung forward, and before he could think he as shooting a web to catch him from above. His equilibrium was thrown for a loop as he swung and his head spun. Just as he glanced up to see what he’d hooked his web onto a body flew past him. It seemed to go in slow motion as the person passed him, blonde long hair whipping in the wind while blue eyes were wide in horror. 

“GWEN!” Peter screamed as he tore from his web to fall after her. 

Quickly he lifted his arm and shot off another web once he neared her. It sailed down, aimed for her abdomen. He shot one in the opposite direction to catch them both. Just as his web wrapped around her, a concrete floor appeared. 

Suddenly he was thrown to his knees, but not before hearing the sickening smack of her skull against the cement. 

Bile spilled from his lips as he vomited while tears spilled down his cheeks. “No, no, no,” Peter chanted as he choked on his tears. 

“You’re selfish.” 

Peter sobbed as he wrapped his arms around himself as he heard  _ his voice  _ in his head. His body shook violently as he continued to cry. He was exhausted, but his body refused to faint. 

“You left me to die! You were going to let that  _ disease  _ kill me!” 

“Harry, no,” Peter pleaded. “I didn’t want you to die! I didn’t want you to turn into  _ that. _ ” 

Suddenly shoes appeared in front of Peter. He followed the legs up and sobbed as he saw Harry towering over him, his eyes filled with hatred and betrayal. His lips were turned into a sneer. He looked at Peter as if  _ he  _ were the monster, as if  _ he  _ had killed Gwen. It felt like Peter’s heart was torn from his chest as he looked into the eyes of the man that was once his best friend. 

“Because of you, Gwen died and  _ I turned into a monster _ !” 

Suddenly Harry’s face morphed into the mutant he had become. With brutal force he kicked his foot forward, and sent Peter flailing backwards. 

Peter landed hard on his back as the wind was knocked out of his chest. His lungs heaved to retain oxygen as he rolled onto his side to cough violently. He ached all over, his body feeling like it had just been beaten black and blue. 

“Peter!” 

At the voice, his head flew up and he cried out as he scrambled to his feet. 

Wade was cuffed to a wall, bloody and broken.  _ And not healing.  _

__ “Wade!” Peter gasped as he lunged forward. 

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” 

The new voice made Peter freeze, his body quacking in terror. As he stumbled a step backwards, suddenly the image of Carnage appeared beside Wade. The red symbiote was smirking with its razor teeth as its arm morphed into a long knife. Peter shook as he watched with horror as it raised the blade to Wade’s throat. The merc still wasn’t healing. 

“Any last words?” Carnage asked sweetly as he turned to the bloody mercenary. 

Wade turned to Peter, his masked face clearly portraying hatred, anger, and that horrible emotion of  _ betrayal _ . Just as Peter screamed and Kasady moved the blade at blinding speed, Wade spoke:

“ _ You did this to me!” _

Peter gasped as he lunged forward. His body was soaked with sweat. He shook violently as he tried to get a hold of his bearings. The smell of metal and leather filled his nostrils. Slowly the blinding light diminished and Peter’s sense’s came back to him. The realization he must have fallen asleep after crying himself tired dawn on him. He breathed heavily as he looked down, and realized he was sticking to the ceiling of the jet. 

A sigh of anguish yet relief escaped him as he pressed his hot forehead to the cool metal of the jet.  _ It was just a nightmare.  _

__ “Huh, must be hard keeping your identity a secret if you do that every morning.” 

Peter turned in fear at the noise then relaxed as he noticed Eddie sitting in one of the chairs, watching the hero curiously. “Doesn’t happen often,” Peter replied as he dropped from the roof. Slowly standing from his crouch, he looked out the window. The view of the horizon of New York in appeared in the distance, only a few more minutes away. “Good timing,” he muttered. He swiped his discarded mask before he moved to the front. 

“The nightmares?” Eddie inquired as he moved to stand behind Peter who sat himself in the pilot seat. 

“Just as frequent as the ceiling incidents,” Peter admitted. He didn’t admit that their frequency was higher in the past weeks. 

Thankfully, Eddie stopped talking as they approached New York. Peter was grateful for that, and then focused on programing the jet to land in the Baxter Buildings mechanic level. Peter moved to focus his thoughts on a more positive place as he calmed down from his nightmare. It was worse than the previous ones. He had at least hoped for a nice dream for what could very well be his last nap. 

Peter moved from the control panel to the bag he had taken with him on his Prison Break mission. He made sure the toy he’d stolen from Tony was there as well as the changes of clothing he brought. Eddie glanced nervously as the jet slowed, and one of the floors of the towers walls slid open to allow the jet inside. It glided into place on the floor of whatever story they were on as the walls of the building slid shut again. While Peter felt safe, he knew Eddie felt anything but. 

“Are you fucking with me?” Eddie snapped while the back of the jet opened. 

Peter stepped out and looked behind him expectantly. “No, now come on you oversized man shaped slime.” 

The symbiote growled as he followed the younger man out of the jet and into the high ceiling room. Peter dropped the bag before turning to the older man. He pulled a small chip from the inside of the wrist of his suit to slide it into place in the cuffs. They made a small ding before falling limply from Venom’s wrists. 

“They’re going to contact the Avengers,” Eddie hissed while rubbing his now free wrists. He scowled as Peter threw on a hoodie while tossing one to the symbiote host as well. “You brought us into the base of the fucking Fantastic Four?” 

Peter snorted at that while kicking on a pair of sweatpants over his suit. “Where else was I supposed to drop off a jet? Plus, they trust me more than Tony Stark, let me tell you that. They tend not to team up anyways. There is always a power struggle between Captain America and Mr. Fantastic.” Reed and Steve were both team leaders, and Peter guessed it would be hard for either of them to give up that role. 

They were inside the Baxter Building, on the level where Reed kept jets as well as other projects he worked on. Peter had full access to the building, and he was sure Reed already knew where he had been. It was morning by now, and he was sure the flexible superhero was barely fazed when he noticed a missing  _ borrowed  _ jet while he was making his morning coffee and checking the tracking system. 

“They trust my judgement,” Peter replied as he tossed his mask in the bag. His identity was no secret to Eddie thanks to the symbiote, and the Fantastic Four has found out his identity a long time prior. He trusted them far more than the Avengers, they hadn’t been split apart by differences in opinion that ended up turning into Civil Wars. Emphasis on the plural. 

“Though we can critique it.” 

Peter groaned as he turned and saw none other than Johnny Storm leaning against the door frame of the elevator. He was all lean muscles and cocky smiles usually, but currently he was watching the man beside Spiderman like a hawk. His blue eyes were full of distrust. Eddie immediately tensed, and Peter didn’t like how his skin crawled being so close to the agitated symbiote. 

“And it won’t change shit.  _ You  _ gave me access to those codes,” Peter retorted as he ran a hand through his tangled hair. “Man, mask hair is the  _ worst. _ ” 

At that, Johnny smirked slightly. “That’s why secret identities fucking suck.” The smirk faltered when he glanced back to Eddie. Peter could sense the man’s skin was crawling with black goo, even if his spidey senses couldn’t pick it up. “And that wasn’t my decision. I’m the pretty boy, I don’t have as much say as Daddy Fantastic.” What he said was confirmed with the distrust that painted his face as he watched the symbiote host. 

“But you won’t stop us,” Peter hummed as he motioned for Eddie to follow. Reluctantly the man put on the hoodie and followed a few paces behind as the spider approached the Human Torch. “You let us leave and don’t have a hissy fit, and I’ll forget about that time you called me a  _ complete  _ loser.” 

At that, Johnny scowled. “I can’t believe you’re still holding a grudge over that! I just wanted a professional menace of the city to help me during my lowest moment.” 

“And you’re going help me by letting us do something reckless and you can go let off some steam by boiling some water. Make pasta, I’m sure Susan would love it if you showed a little maturity for once,” Peter joked as he pressed the button to the elevator. Eddie was clearly uncomfortable so close to a hero who had imprisoned him multiple times, and was part of the team that figured out how to design the perfect cage for his kind. Not to mention his vulnerability to flames, so being beside a guy who could literally turn into a menacing wicker candle probably wasn't the most comforting thing. “It can be your new party trick. You can only burn off your clothes so many times before people start calling you a nudist.” 

“I’m naked in your bed one time-” Johnny began. 

“Oh, don’t preach that to me. I already think you’re a nudist. I’m just saying you shouldn’t let the movement grow.” Peter smirked as Johnny relaxed due to the spider’s sarcastic remarks. 

Just as the elevator dinged, Johnny turned to the two men. “Can I just ask who you’re going after that involves breaking out the Venom symbiote?” Johnny asked, wincing as he spoke. 

Peter frowned as he and Eddie stepped into the open elevator. “Get the cage ready, I’ll contact you when we need it.” 

Johnny’s lips formed a thin line as he watched the symbiote. With a sigh he rubbed his forehead as the elevator doors slipped closed. Eddie visibly relaxed being out of the presence of one fourth of the Fantastic Four. A heavy feeling sat in the pit of Peter’s stomach, but he was glad Johnny wasn’t following after him. He didn’t want to risk getting the group killed, it was a key part in why he made sure they showed up at the last moment to capture Carnage the last time. 

Once they left the building with no further run-ins, they traveled through Manhattan and made it back to Peter’s area of Queens. Eddie was clearly disoriented with being in the public again, but was able to blend into the crowd alongside the young hero. The anxiety of realizing what was fast approaching made Peter nauseous. He noticed the skin under Eddie’s sweater moving occasionally, but Peter knew it was excitement that made Eddie’s blood flow. It was clear who had nothing and who had everything to lose. 

Wade once again danced across Peter’s mind. His heart thumbed painfully against his ribcage. The merc was sure to lose it if anything happened to Spiderman. Peter had never known if Wade meant any of that lovey-dovey shit he spouted when he was around the masked hero, but he had grown to understand Wade did care for him in some aspect or another. And fuck, Peter had begun to care a hell of a lot about Wade. At least with Gwen, before she had died, they both knew how they felt about each other. With Wade…

Shaking his head, Peter watched the blackened windows of the subway as they flew under New York. 

After another few stops and a bus ride, they walked into Peter’s apartment building. A part of Peter was screaming that this was more reckless than when Deadpool had unknowingly found out his identity. It probably was a good idea to relocate after this was over, considering he was actually considering letting the symbiote free afterwards. With his low salary however, he might have to move in with Daredevil down in Hell’s Kitchen. 

“I’m literally going crazy,” Peter murmured as they entered the living room of his apartment. 

“Letting a villain into your home? No, shit.” Eddie said before rolling his eyes. “Don’t worry, I’m more invested with Carnage at the moment. And I don’t need an insane mercenary on my ass if you wind up dead.” At that, the symbiote host fell back onto Peter’s sofa and glanced to the younger man. “What’s the plan webhead?” 

Peter exhaled slowly as he moved to sit on his window sill. He frowned when he noticed the window propped open. Hadn’t he closed it before he left? Shaking his head, he turned back to Eddie. “Deadpool found out where Carnage was hiding out. We couldn’t find him there at the time, but I’m guessing Carnage is still in that area. Hell, I’m guessing he’ll be waiting for us there since it’s the first place I’d look.” Peter pulled his left leg up and rested his cheek against his knee. Wrapping his arms around his leg he sighed again. “So the plan is to walk into Kasady’s trap.” 

Once Peter was finished, Eddie pursed his lips. “Suppose it's the only way. You should walk in first, and I’ll come in after. You can’t sense him, but I’ll have a feel for where he is.” 

That was another thing Peter was scared for. He would be blind in the sense he wouldn’t have any indication where Carnage would come at him from. It was like his fight with Spot last year all over again, but this time instead of a fist hitting him it could be a knife. Having Daredevil on their team would help, but once again Peter didn’t want to involve another hero. He didn’t need to add to the casualty list. 

Peter closed his eyes as the cool spring breeze blew into the apartment and helped calm him down a little. After a moment, he opened his eyes and focused on the floor. “The only thing that matters is that we take down Carnage, Eddie. I know you’re trying to turn over a new leaf, but if you have to choose between saving me or killing Carnage…” 

At that, Eddie sat up and looked to Peter with a frown. “I’m trying to do right by Anne, Spiderman. I don’t have a grudge against you that makes me want to let you die.  I mean, Venom still does but,” 

“Then let that part of Venom take over during the fight. So long as we take down Kasady nothing else matters,” Peter said. This time, his voice was firm. He couldn’t let Carnage get away. He couldn’t let his nightmares become a reality. He winced as he thought about Wade’s words in his dream.  _ You did this to me!  _ A shiver ran through him as he studied the patterns in the carpet. 

They were quiet for a moment as the reality of what was about to happen sunk in. Peter wondered what Wade would do if he didn’t make it out. It made a chill run through his body at the thought. He didn’t want to know. 

“And you’re sure we can’t involve Deadpool? He’d be a good ally,” Eddie said with a frown. 

Peter narrowed his eyes. “Deadpool stays as far away from his as possible. That is final.” His fingers shook as he remembered his dream. He knew Wade wouldn’t die from Carnage’s attacks, but there was still fear in what he could do to Wade that would scar the already damaged man further. All Peter wanted was for Wade to live a happy life, and recover from his trama. Peter didn’t want the man to be damaged more than he already had been. 

Eddie breathed out of his nose, irritated. “Whatever. When do we attack?” 

With a shrug, Peter stood. “Give me some time to rest a little. You should as well. We need to be prepared for the worst.” They both knew it would be the definition of ‘the worst’ when it came to Cletus Kasady. 

“You’re going to assume I won't run off, or try to kill you?” Eddie said with a risen brow. He was clearly baffled by the young heros recklessness. 

“You want to stop Carnage just as much as I do. Plus, new leaf,” Peter replied as he moved to his room and closed the door behind him. He could hear Eddie muttering under his breath, but chose to ignore it. 

Instead, Peter stripped to his boxers then flopped onto his bed to allow himself a retry at his possible final nap. His body ached, his head throbbed, and he was going mental with anxiety. He burrowed himself under his blankets, and yawned tiredly. Rolling over he turned to face the polaroid on his bedside table. He smiled fondly as he saw the photo of him and Wade, pressed close together and clearly smiling bashfully behind their masks. The picture seemed differently places from how he left it, but blamed it on the wind from his air conditioner. 

Carefully, he took the picture in his fingers. He brushed his thumb along the image of Wade. The man looked gorgeous, even covered in all that leather. It made Peter’s heart quicken as he studied Wade’s posture. After a few more moments he placed the photo back onto his nightstand with a soft smile. 

As he drifted off to sleep he swore he could smell Wade, as if he had been in his room. The oddly comforting smell of gunpowder and leather helped him drift into a dreamless sleep. 

 

***

 

“Here,” Peter whispered as he stopped the large black figure beside him. 

They were on top of a building beside the old abandoned warehouse. A sea breeze blew over the area with the thick sent of salt. The wind ruffled the cloth drapes over some of the windows that appeared a pale white in the moonlight. Venom growled lowly beside him as he bared his teeth excitedly. The sky was darker than usual, the light pollution seeming duller than it had always was. It freaked Peter out. Not only were his spidey senses blind, but now his eyes nearly were too. 

They quickly surveyed the area, and Peter’s eyes rested on the blood stained roof top. The body was still there as well, rotting away. It made his stomach churn uncomfortably. The phantom smell of the man assaulted his senses. Peter would call the police after Carnage was detained. 

Tearing his eyes away from the site, Peter glanced to Eddie. The Venom symbiote was much larger than the man originally was, and it towered over the spider menacingly. He was nearly shaking with excitement as he scoped the area. The creature was desperate to see a flash of red goo. 

“Guess there’s no better time than the present,” Peter said with a frown as he stood tall. He glanced to the front door. It was wide open. “Hey, Venom?” 

The symbiote looked to the spider, its stature still untrusting. Peter knew the Venom symbiote still felt betrayed by Peter after he had rejected the suit years prior. He vaguely wondered if that would ever change, or if he’d always be scared the thing would show up and decapitate him one night. 

“Remember the plan. Carnage first, no matter what.” Peter was firm with this. Carnage  _ would not  _ get away. 

“Don’t have to tell me twice,” Venom hissed in distaste. 

Peter nodded curtly. “Good.” 

With that he swung down towards the entrance. The air was cool as he swept down, and landed soundlessly in front of the door. Like Wade had said before, it was eerily quiet. It made Peter shiver. The lights in the sky reflected poorly off the broken glass of the dark building as Peter eyed every window. There was no point in discretion, however: Carnage knew they were here. 

Taking a step forward, Peter entered the building. It was confined and would leave little room for maneuvering. He’d have to get Kasady outside as soon as possible. A chill ran up his spine, but he knew it was just plain fear. His spidey senses were completely useless to him now.  

Once his eyes adjusted he surveyed the area. It was empty. Peter’s heart quickened as he took another step forward. He didn’t want to have to climb the stairs and trap himself further.  _ Maybe I should have made Eddie go first,  _ Peter wondered,  _ too late.  _

After taking a moment to gather his courage, Peter stood strong. “Carnage!” Peter shouted. There was no point in trying to pretend Kasady didn’t know he was here. 

“Isn’t that a little bold? Even for you?” 

The hissing voice made ice shoot straight up Peter’s spine. He tensed instantly as he crouched into a flexible stance. His eyes swept across the area as he tried to locate where the voice had come from. It sounded like it was all around him. Suddenly, he felt claustrophobic. 

“Bold would be asking a psychotic murderer like you on a date,” Peter replied with a small smirk.  _ Sarcasm to mask fear is always a good tactic _ , he thought to himself not for the first time. 

“Deadpool isn’t much different than I am.” 

Peter ground his teeth together at that while still trying to locate the voice. It was clear Kasady was trying to rile him up. He wanted to throw Peter off to get in the perfect first swing. It aggravated him. It was working. 

“Don’t say his name,” Peter grunted. He was sure the sound was coming from the dark elevator. Carefully, he moved into a position for attack. Venom was close by, there wasn’t anything to fear yet. Hopefully it remained a Spiderman/Venom team up, and he didn’t have two symbiotes after him at once again. 

A chuckle that sounded similar to nails on a chalkboard echoed in the space. It made the spider wince. “I wonder how  _ Deadpool  _ will feel when I drop your heart off on his doorstep? I know it’s a little late for Valentines day, but it's the thought that counts!”

With a cold sweat spreading across his skin, Peter shuffled forward slightly. He needed to see if Carnage was inside that elevator. The minute Carnage attacked, Peter would already be a second too late. 

“Kind of a shitty gift, there isn’t much you can do with that,” Peter replied morbidly. He was nearly shaking with adrenaline and nerves. The lack of his spidey senses was throwing him off too sharply. “And I don’t think you’ll get a gift back.” 

Another screeching laugh echoed in the confined space. It made the webslinger’s ears ring. “Just seeing the look of complete and utter  _ heartbreak  _ will be enough for me!”

Swallowing hard, Peter glanced to the window quickly. Eddie was no longer on top of the adjacent building. Horror was building in Peter’s chest the longer he was around the serial killer. 

“Just like seeing the look of fear on your face when I tear your still beating heart from your chest!” 

Suddenly red filled Peter’s vision. In the second he’d turned away, Carnage made his attack. 

The doors to the elevator busted open as red tendrils shot from the space. Peter rolled to the side to dodge as the needle like strings of red flew at him. His shoulder screamed in pain, still injured from his fight with Wade, as he avoided the attack. Peter grunted as he lunged back to his feet before quickly jumping out of the way of a red blade. 

“I do love a game of cat and mouse!” Carnage screamed happily as he came into proper view. 

Peter’s blood ran cold as he came face to face with one of his most infamous villains. The symbiote looked more terrifying than he remembered. All the fears of his younger days swarmed down his throat and filled his lungs like locust. Kasady’s mouth bore dangerous dagger like teeth while the whites of the mask widened with excitement. The red and black of the suit morphed around him like thick tar as tendrils moved around him like seaweed in the bay. He was a shark, and these were his waters. 

“Miss me, Spiderman?” 

“Can’t say I did,” Peter replied as he curiously watched Kasady.  _ Why isn’t he attacking?  _

The symbiote took a step forward, and the spider lunged back. This made the alien smile widely, displaying his terrifying, gleaming teeth. “That ain’t nice! I worked so hard to make this night perfect! Didn’t you like the notes? Oh, that idiot convict, he screamed and screamed! You want to know what he said?” 

Peter’s stomach was churning as he watched the symbiote with heightened fear. He could barely hear Kasady over the loud crashing of his pulse in his ear. 

“‘Oh please! Please! I’ll won’t tell a soul!’. How pathetic!” Carnage cackled as he lifted his arm. Peter watched as the sharp fingers began to morph together as goo ran from Carnage’s body to his wrists. “You know what I said? ‘What can you live without longer? Your liver or kidney?’ What do you think the answer is?” 

Fear made the veins in Peter’s neck pulse quickly as he prepared for whatever assault Carnage was planning. The symbiotes arm hand completely formed a deadly blade that resembled a Xiphos sword. 

“‘Neither if I rip it out myself!’” 

A scream echoed in the building as Peter shot a web before yanking himself out of harm's way as the red figure lunged at him. Fear tore through his chest as he maneuvered out of the psychopaths way. His side felt wet, but he ignored it as Carnage charged at him a second time, the blade swinging wildly.  _ Outside,  _ Peter thought to himself as he dashed out of the way of another frantic swing.  _ Eddie is waiting outside!  _

Shaking the fear from his clouded mind, Peter ducked an oncoming attack before rolling towards the exit of the confined building. Another spike of agony shot from his shoulder, and this time his brain registered the burn in his side as he nearly collapsed from the sheering pain. Carnage cackled maniacally as he threw another swing, this time with an arm shaped like a bat. As he was attempting to regain his stance, Peter didn’t move quick enough. The bat like arm landed against his ribs  _ hard _ , and he was thrown out of the building into the dark streets. 

He flew until his back crashed against the cement of the road. A wheeze escaped his lips as his lungs begged to be fed oxygen while he tumbled backwards. The wind was completely knocked out of him as he attempted to roll onto his side. 

“Is that all you got?! Come on Spiderman!” Carnage laughed tauntly as Peter struggled to his feet. 

Peter now felt the blood that soaked his side as his hand went to the wound. It was luckily just a slice, and it hadn’t been a stab into his internal organs. His ribs screamed in pain, however. He could feel them grinding together.  _ Two broken,  _ he thought with a grunt as he tried to breathe. 

“Course it isn’t,” Peter retorted. “Just warming up, thought I’d let that rusty arm of yours get in a few good hits.” Peter’s side protested that as more blood soaked his costume. 

As Carnage went to reply, a dark figure shot from the sky. Less than a second later Carnage sensed the attack and jumped out of the way just as the black figure came down with crushing speed. The asphalt below cracked under the ferocious pressure as the figure stood to face Carnage. 

“Daddy dearest,” Carnage hissed as he crouched down. He looked like a rabid animal. 

Venom hissed back, circling the other symbiote. The slime of the symbiote rolled across his back. The anger, yet excitement to attack was clear. It was like two wolves stalking one another, baiting the other to attack first. It made the hair on the nap of Peter’s neck stand as he looked for an opening to attack the symbiote. 

Carnage grinned, challengingly. “What? Nothing to say to your son?” 

That made the Venom symbiote let out a growl that shook the immediate area. He clenched his clawed fists as he watched the red symbiote. “You’re a pathetic excuse of a ‘son’, Carnage.” 

“Wow, didn’t know I could get lucky enough to have two fathers who hated me!” Kasady giggled as he jumped from right to left. His arms had morphed back, and he dragged his red clawed against the cement ground. 

Peter glanced to Eddie, and he felt a sense of unease flow off him as he could see the excitement in the symbiotes stance. This fight was going to get bloody and deadly very fast. He carefully watched the two as he tried to adjust to his lack of senses that still threw his equilibrium off.  _ I need to get my head in the game _ , Peter thought as he watched the two symbiotes still circling each other. He needed to get to high ground. 

Before the webslinger could move, suddenly Carnage spoke the words that threw the fight into chaos: 

“I’m surprised you’re teaming up with the man who killed Anne dearest.” 

Venom screamed so loud that some of the glass windows shattered as he charged forward. The two symbiotes let out shrilles as they jumped off the surrounding buildings, attacking and swiping whenever an opening occurred. Quickly, Peter dashed to the building and crawled up to follow after the symbiotes. Luckily, Venom kept Carnage in the surrounding area, decreasing the risk of civilian casualties. It wouldn’t be long until people showed up as the city was once again attacked by fierce aliens. Spiderman was sure to end up in the Bulge with a terrible headline by the morning. 

Carnage let out a scream of anger as Venom sent him flying into one of the buildings around them. Seeing his opportunity, Peter quickly swung down and landed a hard kick into the symbiotes side before flipping back as Kasady took a swing at him. The two jumped back and forth between the red symbiote as they landed wounds on one another. Peter was growing frantic as Carnage continued to hit back with just as much force each time, always aiming for Peter’s injured shoulder. It screamed in pain every time, and it slowly became more difficult to retaliate. He needed to find a way to use Carnage’s weaknesses, he realized after landing a kick to the side of the creatures head. Nothing else was slowing Carnage down except when Eddie thrashed so violently it momentarily tore away the red slime from Kasady’s body. 

“You know, most spiders liquefy their prey from the inside out. Meanwhile, you’re just an annoying bug!” Carnage snapped angrily. He shot out a tendril that threw Peter into the side of the concrete building. Pain flared like a fire from Peter’s shoulder as it braced his impact. Whatever healing had occured after his fight with Wade had been completely stripped away as the limb throbbed violently. 

“I can try to liquefy your outsides,” Peter suggested. Discreetly he attached a new prototype web shooter cartridge into his web shooter. Venom noticed the movement and prepared to jump. 

“What does that-” 

Suddenly flames exploded across the side of the cement building followed by a loud scream. The explosion threw Peter from his position on the opposing building, and be barely caught himself as he hit the ground. He grunted while turning his head to see the Carnage symbiote screaming violently as it rolled across the ground. The yellow grasses around the building lit up as the furniture within the building began to burn as well. 

Peter heard screams from civilians as a few people who were in the warehouses around the area gathered in a group far from the action. Quickly, the spider put himself between the people and the now furious symbiote. 

“Eddie!” Peter called as Carnage screamed violently as he tried to rid himself of the flames licking up his skin. “We have to keep him over here,” Peter insisted as the black symbiote swung over to him. 

Venom glanced to the civilians - many of which had already pulled out cell phones. “Understood. Don’t worry if I’m in the way next time, spider. I’m more resistant to flames.” 

Peter nodded sharply as Venom barrelled towards Carnage. Quickly they were fighting, and Peter grinned under the mask as Kasady was clearly injured from the attack. Before Carnage could notice the civilians and attack them, Peter swung towards the pair and shot off another round of explosives. 

Venom hissed in pain while Kasady screamed as the fire weakened his movements. He thrashed wildly as instinct began to kick him. 

“You motherfucker!” Carnage bellowed as he lunged for Peter. 

Ducking away, Peter yelped in pain as Kasady grabbed him roughly by the wrist before throwing him like a rag doll. Peter soared through the air before smacking into the brick of one of the other warehouses. He groaned in pain as he quickly latched onto the building while his wrist screamed in pain.  _ Oh god, please no! _

As Venom continued to attack Carnage, Peter looked at his wrist in horror. The web shooter was damaged beyond instant repair and his wrist was clearly fractured. He was lucky the thing hadn’t blew his arm off from the crushing of the mechanism. The building was overflowing with flames and the heat burned at Peter’s skin. They licked up the side of the building, and Peter noticed the two symbiotes on the top of the warehouse. 

Peter winced through the flames and watched in horror as Venom was thrown roughly to the ground while a piercing scream echoed from Carnage. Fear built up in the young hero’s chest as the realization hit him. It appeared Kasady had also prepared his own device. 

“Eddie!” Peter screamed as he swung onto the top of the warhouse. 

Another scream tore through his throat as the pain in his arm flared so violently he crashed onto the rooftop. There was some sort of device attached to Carnage that amplified his screams into sonic sound that blew away the symbiote from Eddie. The man wheezed as he tried to stand while the Venom symbiote desperately tried to protect him. 

A whimper escaped Peter’s lips as he struggled to his feet while Kasady approached the other man. 

“I’ve waited so long for this,” Carnage said. His voice held anger, resentment, but also immense, disgusting, joy. His long claws gripped at Eddie’s hair as he jerked the man upwards. Blood dripped from Eddie’s temple from the force. 

“Eddie.” Peter coughed as he saw the weakened man grunt under the pain. 

Suddenly Carnage’s arm extended into a deadly lance. 

“Eddie!” Peter screamed as he jumped forward with every ounce of strength he had remaining. 

The last thing he thought of were Wade’s words: 

_ Please be okay, baby boy.  _

 

***

 

Eddie felt the heat from the fire torch his skin as pain shot across his entire body. Venom was violently ripped from his body and desperately grasping to envelope him again like a frantic mother. Horror was building in his chest as he looked up and saw red. In that moment, he thought of Anne. 

Then he thought of the young man's impaled body handing above him. 

The Venom symbiote screamed as it violently enveloped Eddie, scrambling to retaliate. Eddie couldn’t even feel the familiar sensation, all the could feel was the warmth of blood dripping onto his forehead. 

“Pathetic,” Carnage sneered. 

A cough echoed from the body as it was flung to the side, rolling limply while the lance it was once caught on dripped with more red. All Eddie could see was red, red suit, red flames, red blood. 

“Peter,” Eddie gasped as he looked at the body. 

“Hopefully he stays alive long enough for some fun,” Carnage whined as he wandered to the limp body. “You breathing arachnid?” Kasady sing-songed as he landed a harsh kick against the body. 

_ Was he breathing,  _ Eddie thought in fear. Slowly he rose to his feet as his body shook. Images of Anne’s limp body flooded his vision as he stumbled backwards. Slowly, rage built up in his chest as he looked to the red symbiote who continued to kick at the bloodied hero. Rage burned so fiercely in his chest Eddie could barely see. 

“Answer me you-” 

Suddenly Eddie was crashing into the creature with a shout of animosity. Carnage screamed angrily as he rolled backwards and sneered at his father symbiote. Quickly Eddie slammed his foot harshly into Kasady’s gut, making the symbiote let out a shrill of fury. 

The impact caused the roof to crack dangerously. The flames had ruined the integrity of the building, and it was slowly collapsing under the pressure. With a bitter smile Eddie looked down at the man wheezing below him. He was going to end this, once and for all. 

“Say hi to Raze for me,” Eddie said. He gripped Kasady’s throat tightly as he lifted the symbiote spawn. 

A wheeze escaped the man’s throat before Eddie loosened his grip a fraction. “I’m not dead yet, daddy dearest,” Kasady warned with a sinister smirk. 

Eddie went to attack again, but heard a gurgled cough near him. He turned, and remembered why he’d lashed out in such a mania. The dying hero wheezed bitterly as he tried to curl in on himself. Blood pooled around him like a fountain as he drifted from consciousness. 

__ _ “So long as we take down Kasady nothing else matters… You want to stop Carnage just as much as I do. Plus, new leaf” _

__ Fuck Peter Park and his new leaf ideology and his bullshit self sacrifice. 

With harsh speed, Eddie slammed his spawn harshly into the ground. The symbiote groaned in agony as the building continued to crack under him. Without a second thought, the man allowed the symbiote to overtake him as he rushed across the rooftop. Quickly, as the roof crumbled, he grabbed the bloodied hero in his weak arms. He hadn’t realized how beaten he was until he could barely hold the light hero. Lacerations littered both their bodies coloured with bruises and broken bones. Even in the flames, Peter’s body was growing cold in Eddie’s arms. He was going to die. 

Quickly he leapt from the building, hoping he wouldn’t be too late. 

Carnage cackled behind him. 

 

***

 

Wade paced around Peter’s suddenly gloomy apartment with a ridged stature. He was anxious and couldn't stop moving. He wasn’t sure what was wrong, but  _ something  _ wasn’t right. Fuck he knew what was wrong, but something was  _ deadly  _ wrong. Even the boxes were silent with worry. Nothing decreased the growing feeling of sticky worry that expanded through his lungs. Wade just  _ knew  _ something was wrong, and he had a growing feeling of dread that it had to do with his favourite masked hero’s very fragile human life. 

He had returned immediately to Peter’s home once he’d gotten back to New York. It had taken him far longer than he would have liked, but he could only leave so fast without raising suspicion from Fury. The men had all been confused and instantly there was discussion on what to do when they realized Venom was not on the Caribbean island. Wade had been so pissed, angry, worried, and desperately heartbroken he couldn’t think. He’d gotten back to Peter’s apartment ten minutes prior and knew something was wrong. Peter wasn’t here, but he had been. 

**You don’t think…** Yellow trailed off in fear. 

_ Peter- he might have gone there _ , White managed with fear deep in their voice as well. 

“No, he-he wouldn’t do that,” Wade insisted. He was trying to convince himself of the fact, and it was not working. Anxiety bubbled so sharply in his chest he could vomit.  _ No one gets to fucking take you away from me,  _ Wade thought with desperation. 

He looked down at the polaroid in his fingers that he had swiped from the nightstand. What he would do to go back to that moment, to have kissed away the ice cream that had gotten on Peter’s chin later that night, to laugh beside Peter with no worries or fears, to have told him how he felt. 

Carefully, he tucked the polaroid into one of the pockets of his belt. It was delicate, just like Peter. 

Wade paced for a moment afterwards before slamming his fists against the cheap kitchen countertops. A bowl shook from the force as Wade’s own body quaked. “Fuck, he has to be there. I’m going to fucking kick his ass.” 

As he went to abruptly leave the apartment and find the arachnid, he heard something thud against the door. The boxes went silent from their worried rambling. The room was dead quiet. The only sound was laboured breathing from the other side of the door. It sounded like dead weight, and whatever slid down his door made a squelching sound. Wade could smell the strong metallic scent, indicating the mass quantity of the source of the scent. 

His body moved in a blur as he rushed to the entrance. He tore the door open so quickly he nearly took it off in his panic. His heart was racing a mile a minute as he looked and let out a strangled cry as he saw what it was. 

“W-wade.” 

Spiderman whimpered on his own doorstep while clutching his abdomen. Blood flowed like a river out of him and his gaze was foggy. A gaping wound tore through his stomach while blood dripped from the corners of his mouth that were visible from the tears in his mask. His suit barely clung to him through all the tears, and all visible skin was covered in thick blood. 

“Please,” a voice begged. Wade looked up at the man who was holding the only man Wade loved in the entire world in his arms. His face was beaten, his expression terrified and far off - clearly distressed. “Please, save him.” 

 

***

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry again for the wait! I went back to college, been working when I'm not in school, have a shit ton to do, got a kitten, etc etc... life is wild.  
> Also, blame shameless for taking up my free time. Mickey and Ian??? I'd kill for them.  
> Please tell me what you think! All your sweet comments keep me going!  
> some good ol' hurt/comfort next chapter!
> 
> Thank you for reading!


	5. ACT V

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter is injured, and Wade is horrified. Wade almost lost his baby boy, and Peter almost lost his chance to tell Wade what he'd been wanting to say for so long. Their only saving grace is Carnage has gone silent, or could this mean the beginning of their downfall?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Autumn's sweet we call it fall, I'll make it to the moon if I have to crawl"

***

 

CHAPTER FIVE

 

“Move out of the way!” 

Scientists jumped back out of the way of the mercenary barreling down the hall with a limp young hero in his arms and a hooded man on his right. An audible gasp escaped one of them as they noticed the trail of blood following the trio. 

Wade’s own blood was pounding in his ears as Jarvis called for a clearing of the hall and preparations in the medical room. Peter was growing alarmingly cold against his chest, and his breath was ragged as he tried to heave oxygen into his lungs. His eyes were unfocused as they tried to meet Wade’s. He’d been in and out of consciousness as Wade used his teleporter to get into the Stark Building. He rarely used it for fear of a malfunction, but he  _ needed  _ to get Peter to safety. Nothing mattered more than the concerningly quiet boy in his arms. 

Quickly, Wade was slamming through the doors of the medical center of the Stark Tower. Medical personal were rushing around in confusion from Jarvis’s alarm, but froze in place when they saw the merc. 

“Deadpool!” 

Suddenly Bruce Banner was rushing in front of him, his eyes wide with worry as he looked at the bloody body in Wade’s arms. It had been a long time since the two had seen each other, and this was probably not the reunion the doctor had imagined. Or maybe it was, it wasn’t uncommon for the merc to crawl back unannounced into someones life covered in  blood. 

“Wade,” Peter gurgled. He coughed and spit blood across Wade’s chest and chin. His mask was in tatters, however, his identity was still disguised. Wade had wanted to put his own mask over Peter’s head, but he hadn’t wanted to risk reducing the young man's air supply. 

“You have to save him,” Wade demanded. He could feel his body shaking as panic built in his throat. 

Before Bruce could reply, a gurney was rushed in front of Wade. The man pushing it looked fearfully at Wade, but he ignored the fearful nurse in lieu of carefully resting Peter against the thin cotton sheets. A whine escaped the man's lips along side a painful gasp. The white cotton of the gurney was immediately dyed a deep red. 

“Don’t you fucking dare let anyone see his face,” Wade warned. His voice held malice to it, and the nurse was visibly shaking. 

“Surgery,” Bruce barked the order. The gurney was quickly pushed past two milky white glass doors with a slew of medics following. Bruce threw one more look at Wade before rushing off to the emergency room as well. 

Wade’s chest heaved while his jaw clenched dangerously tight. He could practically feel his teeth shattering against the pressure. His heart painfully thrummed in his chest as he stared at the doors that separated them. Finally, after a long moment, he broke. His knees buckled, and he slipped to the floor as the adrenaline drained from him. Before he could stop it, his eyes welled up with salty tears.  _ Peter.  _

The man beside him stood static, rigid, and shaken. Wade had barely processed the man who had carried Peter to the safety of the young man’s home, and he was too drained to speak. The man also was bleeding from areas across his body, but was trying to clearly remain as indifferent as he could. 

Tony would be here in seconds to demand answered Wade didn’t currently possess. 

**We’re fucked.**

_ Ditto.  _

**If only we were the stupid purple glob.**

_ Ditto.  _

“ _ There is a room down the hall, three doors down. I suggest resting in there,”  _ Jarvis’s voice sounded from some intercom. The voices stopped their repetitive conversation at that before resuming a tyrant of thoughts. They were panicking. 

Wade couldn’t move. His muscles felt like lead as the Pokémon theme song played in his head. 

“Come on, before Ironman shows up.” 

Wade wrenched from the arm that tried to hoist him to his feet. He turned to face the man who hid in the sweater he’d snagged from Peter’s couch before they had transported to the tower. A million questioned raced through Wade’s mind, and he knew the security of the room would provide at least a few answers. 

With narrowed eyes, Wade stood. “You’re on thin fucking ice,” he snarled. 

The man just jerked his head up and down. 

While more medical personal rushed past, on autopilot, Wade quickly found the door Jarvis referenced. The program unlocked the door for the two men who quickly took sanction inside. The lock immediately fell into place behind them. 

“ _ I’ll keep the audio in the room disabled. You only have a short time before I will have to inform Mr. Stark of your location.” _

__ With that, the sentient computer went ghost. 

Without warning, Wade slammed the hooded man roughly against the wall. His forearm pressed harshly against the man’s windpipe. A ripple roamed under the fabric as the man tried to inhale a calming breath - which was difficult with Wade’s restriction. The inclination of what that meant made Wade’s blood boil to an alarming degree. 

“Why the  _ fuck  _ did you let this happen?” 

The man winced against Wade’s words. His eyes were filled with guilt. 

“Didn’t-didn’t think he-he’d jump in front,” the other man said. His voice struggled against the pressure on his throat. 

Wade’s heart thudded against his ribs as he pressed harder against the man’s throat. The ripples grew in animosity under the sweater. 

“Do-don’t piss it off. N-not here,” the man grunted. “Once it t-takes over, I l-lose control.” 

“Fucking symbiotes,” Wade snapped as he dropped his arm from the man’s throat. 

Eddie wheezed in oxygen as Wade slammed his fist against the wall - breaking through the white paint. It barely fazed the man when he pulled his arm out of the hole and saw the destroyed fist. He’d hit a stud, and his knuckle was crushed back to his wrist. It felt good to focus on the physical pain compared to the emotional turmoil rushing through his mind. 

“Tell me what happened.” Wade turned to the symbiote as he spoke. As he looked to the man, he used his unharmed hand to push the mangled knuckle back into place. 

“I told him we needed you,” Eddie muttered as he watched the man before him. The incredible healing factor was astonishing to witness in person, but Eddie couldn’t admire it much as he looked at the figure.  

His entire stance portrayed who he was:  _ Deadpool.  _ Wade knew he must look terrifying. He hadn’t felt this intense grief and building anger since Carmelita. The desperation was also there, and the memories of digging through mounds of corpses surfaced. Except this time, every face that greeted him with an overturned body was Peter’s. Wade was trying to remain intimidating, but he could feel the seals breaking. He was seconds away from a mental breakdown. 

His vision was already dotted with black spots. 

Eddie seemed to not notice Wade crumbling. “He said he didn’t want you involved. We had a good plan anyways. It should have fucking worked. But Carnage - just one second and he suddenly had the upper hand. He had this device, and I couldn’t do anything. The next thing I know the fucking-” Eddie paused as he saw the shake of Wade’s shoulders. Rather than call Spiderman an idiot, he chose his next words carefully. “The next thing I know, Spiderman is jumping between Carnage and I. The plan was that if one died to stop Carnage, we let it happen.” 

“He’d never agree to that,” Wade cut in sharply. The voices weren’t even speaking while Wade tried to blink away the dizzy hysteria. “He’s always going off about how he’d sacrifice himself to save anyone.” 

Eddie gave a small nod. “Should have figured that much.” 

To Eddie’s surprise, Wade slumped down in one of the chairs in the conference room. He had expected at least one gunshot wound from the mercenary. 

“He… he’s… fuck,” Wade cussed. He tore the suddenly suffocating mask from his face to run his hands over his eyes. A part of him demanded he replace the mask, but it was too confining. Anxiety was tearing through him like a lion, and he couldn’t intake enough oxygen. His body was shaking violently now. He needed to focus on the fact Peter would be okay, but how could he? The blood loss, the gaping wound, his cold body, it all swam to the forefront of Wade’s mind. 

Before Eddie could offer any words - if any could come to him - the door suddenly opened. Wade didn’t even look up as he heard the whir of Tony’s weapon charging. He already knew it was aimed at his skull. 

“If you try to insinuate I did this, I’ll fucking kill you Stark.” The words were out before Wade could stop them, but he didn’t feel any remorse over them. 

“Then why the hell did you drag a dead kid into my fucking tower?!” 

With that, Wade snapped. Hysteria broke through, and he was clenching his skull so tightly he could feel the bones cracking under the stress. The sutures of his skull cracked as he began to wheeze. His brain was swimming and darting around in a manic episode while his eyelids blinked so rapidly it made him dizzy. A strangled cry escape his lips. Why hadn’t he been there? Why was he always showing up too late? 

“Jesus christ, Wilson!” 

Wade couldn’t register the voice as the yellow and white boxes started screaming. The blame was thrown on him in insults and deprecating thoughts. 

**We shouldn’t have gone to his apartment! Why didn’t we go to the warhouse first?!**

_ You’re an idiot! Why would Spiderman be sitting in his apartment?!  _

**Peter is going to die because of** **_you_ ** **!**

Another strangled cry escaped Wade’s lips as blood dripped onto his lap. A part of his cranium must have sliced down from his gums. 

“Wilson, come on son, can you hear me? What did you say Tony?!” A part of Wade vaguely recognized the voice, but his discombobulated mind couldn’t process it. 

“Who cares what I said, Rogers?! And who are _ you _ ?!” 

Wade couldn’t breath as he gasped through his sobs. 

“Jesus, Wilson can you hear me?”

Finally, the voice registered in Wade’s distant brain. He felt strong hands on his that slowly detached them from his crushed cranium. The voice brought him back to a similar hysteria, and he tried to register where he was now. He had surely done damage to his brain, but his healing factor slowly repaired the disrupted brain matter. 

“Do you know where we are, Wilson?” the voice asked again. It was firm, yet soft. 

Wade tried to collect his thoughts. He could still feel shards of his skull imended were they should not be. “Korea?” 

“No, but I know it’s just as scary, son.” 

“Carmelita-” 

“Jesus Tony, what did you say to him?” the voice was harshly directed elsewhere. He had clearly damaged his cerebral cortex, and the pressure had also affected his hippocampus. 

Suddenly his healing factor kicked in. 

“Spidey,” Wade whimpered. 

Carefully he opened his eyes and saw a very concerned Steve Rogers crouch before him. The symbiote was warily watching a very irritated looking Tony Stark who had his right hand trained on the hooded figure while his left was directed at Wade. 

“You there, Wilson?” Steve asked gently. 

“I’m going to shoot the fucking oversized thermos if he doesn't drop his fucking hand,” Wade warned as he tried to regulate his breathing. His head throbbed from the previously self-inflicted pain. 

“Again, who are you,” Tony grunted as he faced the unnamed man. His left hand did drop from Wade’s direction. Wade must look deranged if Tony really thought he’d shoot the man in his own tower. Granted, Wade had planned it out now thrice in his head in the span of two days. 

“Superhero, secret identity, all that shit. Really thermos, put down your oversized laser pointers already, or use them to entertain a cat.” Wade shot a glare at the tower occupant. 

“Jarvis?” Tony called. 

_ Wilson is telling the truth, sir. I see no evidence to suggest he’s a  _ current  _ threat.  _

Wade really had to use the fact Jarvis was on his side to get access to Tony Starks internet history before their fragile alliance fell apart. 

Slowly, Tony dropped his arm. Wade vaguely wondered how long it would be before Tony found out Eddie’s true identity. Hopefully it would be once he was far from the tower. Or, maybe not. Wade wanted something to happen to the man who’d let Peter get so severely injured. He heard Yellow entertaining the idea of personally showing the Venom symbiote what happened when you fucked with Deadpool. White seemed enthusiastic, their conversation direction changing. For the first time in awhile Wade was having trouble keeping up with them. He guessed it had to do with being conscious while he crushed his own skull. 

“What happened?” Stark demanded again as he crossed his arms tightly. His jaw clenched dangerously tight as he looked between Wade and the unrecognized symbiote. 

“What do you fucking think?” Wade snarled as he stood. Steve looked warily at the mercenary as he took a step back. 

“Enlighten me, because clearly I don’t know what made one of my teammates come here with a hole in his stomach.” Tony glared hard at Wade for his outburst. 

A hysterical laugh emitted from Wade’s chest as he shook his head. “Teammate? Please, he isn’t even affiliated with you all anymore. Don’t blame him, being treated like some kid you can all cart around when you feel like it.” That made Tony wince slightly before his eyes hardened. Wade rolled his eyes. “Don’t act like what I’m saying isn’t true. He’s has been through some shit, and helps you whenever you need it. But no, the minute he needs help you all turn your backs.” Anger was swelling in Wade’s chest as he spoke. 

“Wilson, please just tell us what happened,” Rogers said with a sad frown on his lips. Wade wondered if he was thinking of Barnes. 

“Celtus fucking Kasady happened! Which, please, enlighten me how the fucking thing got out  _ again _ ?” Wade questioned with dangerously narrowed eyes. “Oh, and how about how did Venom get out too?” The hooded figure shifted at the words, but no one seemed to notice as they listened to Wade’s poorly masked accusations. 

“We can’t be around every time a villain escapes-” 

“Shove it Iron Dildo,” Wade cussed angrily. “Two alien creatures who have both killed hundreds of people escape, and you think one hero with a poor excuse of a healing factor can handle it alone because he did it once before? Do you not understand  _ he isn’t immortal  _ like you all pretend he is?!” Wade’s chest was heaving as his previously forgotten rage swarmed like locust in his chest. “Spidey is the best hero I know, but even he has his limits. People need him, and you all let him get thrown to the wolves.” 

Tony looked like he wanted to retort, but couldn’t form a solid counterargument. Steve looked away from Wade’s gaze guiltily.  

As Wade went to tear into them again, a firm grip held his bicep. He looked to his left, and narrowed his eyes at the hooded man. 

“Once he’s stabilized we should take him to the Fantastic Four’s tower.” Eddie glanced up at Wade with his lips pressed in a thin line. “They have tech to combat Carnage. They also know his identity. It’s  _ safer _ .” 

Wade figured he meant it in a dual way. Eddie could explain what occurred without worry of Tony realizing his identity while Peter was also safe from exposing his own. While Wade wanted to argue to spite the symbiote, he conceded. He knew when he needed to fold, and anything that regarded Peter’s safety was at the top of that list. 

“ _ Excuse me _ ,” Tony gawked in irritation. “Spiderman stays right here.” 

“Spiderman goes where it is safest,” Wade retorted as he pulled out his phone. He leaned on the conference table while shooting Tony a challenging glance. 

**How do we even have the FF’s phone number?**

_ Mostly likely somehow ties in with our knowledge of our other plot lines that we know while not experiencing them. I’m guessing this is somehow tied into Earth 12101. _

**I don’t like that one. I don't like people messing with us and ruining our funny internal monologue. Wait, didn’t we kill Spider-**

_ Other earth, not our reality, not canon 616, fake news- _

**Let’s just blame the X-Men and Psycho-Man and call it a day.**

“Shut up,” Wade muttered as he scrolled his contacts. 

_ At least its not Earth 1610.  _

**Can we even know that one if we weren’t part of it? And it has it’s redeeming qualities like the birth of Miles! We should introduce Peter to his successor! He’s like 8 years old now-**

“Thanks Stark. White and Yellow are rambling more than usual now,” Wade said with narrowed eyes. “They’re introducing random useless plot lines for dark comedic relief.” 

Before Tony had the chance to retort, the door smoothly slid open. They all turned to the shuffling of feet to see Dr. Banner enter the room with a grim face. He had changed clothing, but Wade could still see flecks of red on his shoes. It made his stomach drop. The voices stopped their distracted ramblings when Wade’s eyes landed on the droplets. Black blots clouded Wade’s vision, but he refused to allow another emotional outburst when Bruce stood there with important information. 

Before Bruce could speak, Wade stood. “Please tell me he’s alive,” he said as he took a hesitant step closer. 

“He’s stable,” Bruce replied. 

Wade would have collapsed if he hadn’t been gripping the conference table. He could practically hear  _ Ocean Park Standoff _ playing in the background, though he guessed it was probably Yellow. 

“And?” Wade prompted as Eddie stepped away from the wall. 

Bruce let out a breath at that before glancing to Steve which made Wade cross his arms in irritation. Steve gave a quick nod to which Bruce nodded back. “He’s not great, not going to sugar coat it. His heart stopped once on the table,” - Wade felt his head spin and his heart break - “He’ll live though, but he’ll be out of commission for a minimum of five days to a week with his healing factor, I’d say. Longer before he can go swinging around, or going on another villain standoff, just to be safe.” Bruce chewed his lip nervously before another nervous sigh escaped his lips. “We were lucky the entry and exit wound was far enough to the right. It damaged his liver and the right kidney, but avoided his heart and spinal cord. He has a fractured wrist, four broken ribs and two bruised. Overall? I’d rather not be in his shoes,” Bruce said. The list of injures felt like repeated stabs to Wade’s gut. 

Wade felt like he was swimming underwater as Bruce continued to speak to Tony and Steve. The damages Peter as been afflicted with were horrendous. Rage was swarming so heatedly in his head he had to physically dig his fingers into his arms to keep from grabbing his gun and letting off a sea of bullets. He was going to kill Carnage repeatedly and relish in the torture the fucker would face until the symbiote grew so weak it could no longer heal. 

“You want to move him?” 

Wade glanced up when he felt eyes on him. Bruce was looking at him perplexed while Steve looked to him with pity. Wade looked away. He really hated pity. 

“Let’s be real for a minute. He’s safer with the Fantastics. Secret identity problems, added to the fact a symbiote wants to murder him, I’d say they have all the tech he’ll need to remain safe and heal.” Wade glanced down from his view that was drilling holes into the ceiling. Bruce looked like he wanted to argue, but also saw the logic within Wade’s concerningly even words. 

Steve nodded at Wade’s statement. “I’ll make some calls to Dr. Richards.”

“You can’t be serious!” Tony snapped angrily. Wade narrowed his eyes at the tin can again. “Not to mention we need to figure out what  _ really  _ happened. Are we just going to take a mercenary for hires word that he found Spiderman on Death’s door?!” 

Before Steve could reply, Wade was inches from Tony’s face. The man jumped in surprise as he felt cold chrome-moly steel against his throat. Without a second thought, Wade removed the safety from the pistol. 

_ Huh, maybe this _ is  _ Earth 12101.  _

**Nah, let’s call it Earth 12101-00B Tony Stark dies only addition.**

“The voices have a few good ideas,” Wade spat harshly. He could see Steve warily study the scene to see how he could aid the surprisingly idiotic genius millionaire. 

“All I have to do is tell Jarvis to neutralize you. Then you’ll be dead,” Tony said with a grunt. 

Wade shoved the steel harshly against the scruff of Tony’s esophagus. “See, that’s the problem with threatening me: I can’t die. Don’t say stupid shit unless you somehow find a way were you walk out of this instead of me.” 

Tony ground his teeth together as Wade stepped back. With a cheerful smirk that also contained animosity, Wade made a show of flipping on the safety. Steve looked cautiously at Wade before shaking his head. He’d teamed up with Wade enough times to know a lecture would do shit all. It was like when Daredevil conceded to Wade’s antics. 

“Now, let me see Spiderman.” 

 

***

 

After little argument over Wade’s level of clearance - Wade was pretty sure Tony had nearly pissed his pants when he’d tucked the pistol under his chin - Wade found himself outside the door to Spiderman’s recovery room. His heart raced wildy in his chest as his eyes locked on the door handle. 

Eddie Brock made plans to go contact the Fantastic Four once the morning rolled around while Wade went to see Peter. He had guessed that he did it out of a sense of self-preservation. It was sure to gain a few brownie points for the alien’s host. Wade did hope that the flaming kid would at least give Eddie a good blast that Wade hadn’t been able to do himself. 

Taking a deep breath, Wade slowly turned the door handle. 

The room was completely white and sterile. Wade hated looking at anything that resembled hospitals, but the clean appearance was much different than the Weapon X labs. After another inhale, he fully entered the room. 

His heart hammered in his chest as he saw the quiet rise and fall of the smaller man’s chest who lied on the gurney. A machine beeped along with a steady heartbeat that Wade wanted to turn into a twenty four hour playlist for reassurance. Needles were stuck into his veins, and Wade had to look away from them to avoid haunting ghost memories to surface. Instead, he focused on the limp hand on the bed that wasn’t in a cast. 

After standing for far longer than reasonable, he slowly made is way over to the bed. His eyes watered as he rounded the injured man to rest in the chair beside the bed. Peter looked terrible. 

Bruises stood out prominently against his pale freckled skin, and stitched highlighted lacerations across his body. 

Wade gently rested in the plastic chair before leaning forward and placing a gloved hand over top of Peter’s. “I’m so sorry baby boy,” he whispered as his voice broke. He stroked his thumb over the top of Peter’s hand, feeling the bumps of bone and veins. 

He didn’t speak again for a long time, and the boxes remained silent as well. The sun was steadily rising in the sky as he continued to stroke Peter’s skin. Bruce occasionally came in to glance at his vital signs, but didn’t pay Wade any mind other than to squeeze his shoulder once. It was an act of sympathy, and Wade accepted it without a retort. Even though when angered the man could turn into a green version of the Thing, Wade trusted him more than many of the towers occupants. 

Once the sun was high in the sky, Wade finally spoke again. 

“You’re an idiot.” 

He was greeted with silence, sans the heart monitor. Wade’s heart ached as his body craved the sound of Peter’s voice. He’d been in the man’s presence without a snarky remark for too long. It made his skin crawl with anxiety. Tears welled up in his eyes again, and he removed his mask to avoid ruining it with tears and snot. He wrung the fabric in his free hand for a moment before looking to the hero’s masked face. 

“You know, when you wake up I’m going to get you back for that door thing,” Wade chuckled tearily. “I know I said no hard feelings, but damn you turned my brains into scrambled eggs.” His voice broke as tears fell down his face. Wade didn’t even bother to wipe them away as more continued to replace them. 

He shuffled the chair forward more, and continued to gently stroke Peter’s hand. He glanced up and his eyes roamed the white cotton mask Bruce had placed over his head during surgery, keeping his nose and below exposed for ease of breathing. 

“You remember when you said you were worried about me, webs? All those weeks ago?” Even though he was greeted with silence, he continued. “You tried to play it off, but it made me so happy. I genuinely wanted to cry in that stupid laundromat.” Wade’s bottom lip wobbled as he pressed his exposed forehead against Peter’s hand. The renewed heat of Peter’s skin felt so good against Wade’s own that his tears nearly burst into a sob. “I’m worried about you, baby boy.” 

Peter remained still under Wade’s grasp, but Wade could also feel the pumping of his pulse in his wrists. 

“You know the other day when we were on the top of that building eating those tacos? And you wanted to know why I was staring?” Wade closed his eyes as he rested his head on the side of the bed, still holding Peter’s hand. “You, I was staring at you. You looked so happy, so perfect, so beautiful. God, if I could go back I’d just tell you then.” His tears pooled before spilling over the bridge of his nose and onto the cotton sheets. “I’m not good at this emotional stuff, and I know you aren’t. But, I want to talk to you, baby boy. I want to let you know I’m here for you, and I never want you doing this again. I honestly don’t know what I’d do without you.” 

Wade rested with his head against the cotton sheets until he heard Jarvis overhead warn him that the Fantasic Four had arrived. Sitting up, Wade stretched out his stiff body before replacing his mask. It stuck to his face in an irritating matter due to the salty tears that soaked Wade’s scarred face. His spine cracked as he stretched again to prepare for a fight to be able to remain by Peter’s side when they moved him to the Baxter Building. 

Shaking his head, Wade laced Peter’s fingers with his and rested his masked lips against the top of his hand. “You are my sun, baby boy,” Wade hummed softly. 

“Thought I was your peach.” 

Wade’s head shot up. His heart pounded against his ribs as he looked up to see a strained yet warm smile form on a beautiful set of lips. 

“Told you I’d be okay.” 

 

***

 

“Told you I’d be okay,” Peter chuckled dryly, his voice raw and raspy. He winced at the uncomfortable movement of his rib to accommodate his laughter. His whole body ached painfully. His brain was foggy, and he vaguely wondered where he was. Peter noticed his vision was obscured by gauze, but he could see through it like a fog. A part of him suggested not to think to hard on just what had happened to land in him the hospital bed. Wade was sure to give him an earful for it later. 

“Baby boy,” Wade gasped as he leapt to his feet. The plastic chair clattered behind him as it toppled over. 

A smile tugged at Peter’s lip, and he tried not to wince when he realized there was a split in his upper lip. “How long have I been out?” he inquired as he glanced around the room. He couldn’t locate a way to tell what time it was. There wasn’t much to see as he couldn’t see any definition to the blurry objects through the makeshift mask. 

“I brought you here at two in the morning. Its four in the afternoon now,” Wade informed him as his eyes roamed Peter’s body. Peter realized he was categorizing his injuries. 

Peter sighed as he rested his head against the pillow. The gurney was more comfortable than his own bed, and he assumed that meant he was in Tony’s medical facility in the Tower. He could also tell from the blurry view. It wasn’t his first rodeo. “I don’t remember much,” Peter muttered as he struggled against his heavy eyelids. Wade’s hand that held his own strengthened their grip at his words. “You’re mad,” Peter stated the obvious as he glanced to the still mercenary. 

A brow rose under the mask. “You think, webhead?” 

Peter noticed Wade’s voice was hoarse, as if he’d been crying. Immediately, his stomach dropped. “I didn’t mean to make you upset,” Peter said. Regret was clear in his voice. 

“You know, I didn’t realize what you were doing until I was in a different country.” Wade hadn’t removed his fingers from Peter’s own, and Peter didn’t want him to. His grip was grounding and comforting. Wade’s eyes were downcasted, and Peter didn’t miss a slight dark dampening of the man’s masked eyes. It made his heart thud painfully. “You died, Spidey.” Wade’s voice cracked as he spoke. Peter’s eyes widened at that. “Bruce said your heart stopped when they were operating. And I couldn’t do anything, didn’t even know till afterwards. You promised you’d be okay, but you  _ died. _ ” 

Peter’s heart clenched painfully as his stomach dropped nauseatingly. The fear and betray in Wade’s tone was sickening. The masked hero felt wet tears fill his own eyes. He strengthened his weak hold on Wade’s hand, and the merc glanced at their connected digits in surprise. 

“Promise I’ll never do it again, Wade.” Peter turned his head, and he wished the bandages wouldn’t obscure his view like they did. He wanted to really  _ look  _ at Wade to show he meant it. 

Before Wade could reply, the door busted open. Wade’s free hand leapt to his belt to his pistol while Peter nearly attached himself to the ceiling in surprise - only stopping due to the pain in his side. The two men were greeted by a boy half consumed by flames of rage. The man looked pointedly at Peter the minute his eyes landed on the young man. Peter smiled warily at the aggressive candle stick. 

“Hey Flamebrain,” the young spider greeted with a wince. The nickname did little to dim the quiet literal fire in Johnny’s eyes. 

“Johnny!” 

Peter turned and saw an exasperated Reed enter the room while glaring at his brother in law who was still watching Peter. Sue was beside him while Ben moved to stand near Johnny. Wade held Peter’s hand tighter when he noticed the young heros shake slightly in worry. 

“Looks like mom and dad are here,” Wade said with a smirk at Peter. All hints of any emotion other than cocky amusement drained from Wade’s face as the newcomers entered. 

A frown formed on Peter’s lips as he quickly glanced to Wade. They had a lot to talk about, and Peter had a lot to apologize for. For now, he turned his obscured eyes to the unit of four who had come to be a family to him. 

“Hey guys. So…. what’s going on?” Peter asked carefully as he attempted to sit up. He grunted, and quickly Wade moved his hand from Peter’s to help him sit up. His hand was warm against Peter’s back even through the thin cotton shirt he wore. 

Since Johnny was still brooding and looked in extreme need of a fire extinguisher, Reed stepped forward. “We’re moving you to our facility. We have a car outside. It’ll be easier for you P-” Reed stopped abruptly when he realized Wade was there. “Spiderman. Eddie told us everything.” 

The young hero nodded as he bit his lip. “Well, hopefully he can fill me in too. I can’t quite remember everything,” he admitted. 

“Probably the drugs,” Wade supplied as he rubbed his thumb soothingly against Peter’s back. It made Peter close his eyes in gratitude, and he was grateful no one could see it. “You’re probably higher than Al after one of her coke and IKEA binges.” 

Peter nodded along lazily to that. “I want IKEA meatballs.” 

Wade chuckled at that. “I’ll get you some, baby boy. Hopefully they don’t have horse meat in them.” 

That made Peter smile lazily up at the merc. 

“You’re a moron,” Johnny cussed suddenly. Peter just made a sound of agreement which only infuriated the hero more. The flames licked up his arms slightly hire, almost engulfing him at this point. “What were you thinking?! I shouldn’t have let you go,” Johnny started. 

“Hey, Human Cigarette Lighter, how about we wait till he isn’t as high as everyone in California post-legalization?” Wade suggested with a bit of protective irritation to his voice. It made Peter smile again. Peter had missed Wade’s banter since their fight on the rooftop. It was soothing. 

“ _ Excuse me, _ ” Johnny began before Ben put a strong hand on his shoulder with a smirk. 

“Calm down kid. He’s right, let’s get back first,” Ben said in his gravelly voice. 

Reed ignored the brooding fireball, and instead came over to Peter’s side. “How’re you feeling?” he asked as his eyes softened. 

“Sore,” Peter admitted as he glanced down at himself. “And I want this stupid gauze off. God, my insides feel all scrambled,” he groaned pitfully. Wade tensed beside him, and it made Peter look to him in worry. His foggy brain produced a phantom memory of something  _ inside  _ him. It made his stomach churn. “Oh shit, they  _ were _ .” 

Wade nodded shortly. 

Reed pursed his lips as he glanced to Wade for a quick moment. “We’ll move you now. I’m sure you have some clothing still in your old room or Johnny’s, if not we can send him to grab some from your place,” Reed began. Peter nodded at that, but his eyes were still trained on Wade’s blank face. 

Before more could be said, Peter interjected. “Wade’s coming.” 

The merc looked down in surprise at the hero as did the group of Fantastics. A warm smile spread across Wade’s face under the mask, and it made Peter’s heart flutter. Peter’s previous promise came to mind as he watched the mercenary.  _ I’ll be okay Wade. I have something to tell you after this is all over.  _

  
  


****

 

After a few exchanged words about Wade’s level of access, Peter found himself situated in his room in the Baxter Building. He didn’t have a million wires attached to him, but instead a simple wrist band that would alert Reed of any changes in Peter’s vitals. The bed was soft under him and the sheets smelled like laundry detergent. It was far more comforting than the Stark Tower had been. 

He had slept the moment he’d gotten to the tower at Reed’s request - well more of a demand. It was early in the morning the next day, and Peter already felt a bit better. While his healing factor wasn’t anything to boast about, it did allow him to sit up by himself slowly. A soft groan escaped his lips as this back ached from his lengthy sleep. He winced when his side protested as well. Right, there was a huge bandage there. Scrambled. 

“Ugh,” Peter moaned as he rubbed his eyes. He still felt exhausted, and, since he refused any heavy drugs, the pains in his body were making themselves known. 

“More like  _ ugh. _ ” 

A smirk wove its way onto Peter’s face as he turned to see a smirking merc in the doorway. Wade was dressed in grey sweatpants with a form fitting hoodie, and the hood up with his floral baseball cap also on underneath. His face was hidden, but Peter could see still those lips he’d missed. 

“You changed,” Peter hummed as he leaned against the mountain of pillows Wade had provided the day before. 

Wade nodded as he came and sat down on the bed beside Peter’s thigh. “I went back to my safehouse when you fell asleep. The suit reeked of blood and salt,” Wade explained as he set down a plate on the bedside table. Peter didn’t think to hard about the fact it was his blood all over the Deadpool suit. “Now, lift that mask baby boy. You gotta eat something. Mr. Silly Putty said you can eat solid foods.” 

“Silly Putty?” Peter questioned in humour as he lifted the hem of the mask. It was one of his spares he’d left in tower in case he needed his suit while there. 

“He’s just as stretchy,” Wade retorted with what Peter assumed was accompanied by an eye roll. “Now, open up. You should eat before it’s interrogation time.” 

Peter winced at the idea. He didn’t know where Eddie was, and no one other than Reed had bothered him since his arrival the day before. He guessed they wanted him to rest before they got together to discuss what the next step was. Peter knew he was in for the lecture of a lifetime, but he wasn’t ready for it at the moment. What he wanted to do was curl up with Wade in a booth at the Pizzaria the man had raved about the week before. Instead, he was stuck dealing with the aftermath of a mission gone very south, and in more ways than one. 

“I just made a good Southern joke in my head,” Peter stated as he opened his mouth when Wade put a fork in his view. Wade hummed with a smirk as Peter chewed the food. Immediately, the young hero moaned around the mouthful which made the smirk on Wade’s face grow larger. “Holy fuck these taste good.” 

Wade groaned with a smirk at that. “If my pancakes can get even Spidey all hot and bothered I need to make them more often.” 

“I can feed myself, Wade,” Peter commented as Wade cut another piece. 

“Oh, I’m sure. But caring and nurturing is my kink. Let me have this considering you kinkshamed my foot fetish,” Wade joked. Peter rolled his eyes, but took the second heavenly bite of the raspberry pancakes. The whipped cream on top sweetened the bitterness of the berries. “And you’ve lost your southern joke privileges,” Wade said with a stern look. 

Peter looked apologetically to the merc. “I’m sorry Wade.” 

Wade pursed his lips, and Peter couldn’t resist staring at them for a moment. “We’ll discuss this another time. For now, I just want to happily feed my baby boy,” Wade insisted. 

With a nod, Peter took the next bite Wade extended to him. As he chewed he noticed Wade’s free hand that rested on the bed. After a moment of hesitation, Peter rested his fingers on top of Wade’s. The merc looked to Peter in surprise which gave a better view of his scarred lips. Peter had to force his eyes away from the textured skin to make sure he didn’t upset the man. However, the texture of Wade’s bare fingers under his was unlike anything Peter had felt before. It was rough, yet soft like newborn skin. The scars created grooves across his hand, and Peter felt as if he was running his fingers over the bark of a tree. It was a strong outer shell that protected the soft inside of the man before him. The bark of an angel oak tree made up Wade Wilson, and it was beautiful. Wade was large dominating constant in Peter’s life that offered reassurance and protection just like the looming tree. 

“I’m really sorry, I need you to know that. I never meant to hurt you, Wade.” Peter glanced up, and briefly saw the shine of beautiful sky blue eyes from under the ballcap. They were the most gorgeous eyes Peter had ever seen. They were filled with emotions that Peter had never seen from the man, and shone like crystals in the light. It was mesmerizing. 

Wade turned his head down after a moment, but moved to tangle Peter’s fingers with his. His eyes were still imprinted into Peter’s mind, shining. A soft bashful look crossed Wade’s face as the man looked away, but shame soon overtook the man’s hidden features. “If they disgust you, you don’t have to-” 

“You’re fingers don’t disgust me.” Peter squeezed Wade’s fingers in reassurance, and relished in the feeling of Wade’s hand engulfing his. “ _ You  _ don’t disgust me.” 

A small warm and fond smile danced at the corners of the older man’s lips at the spider's words. “Thanks, webhead.” 

Peter was quiet as Wade continued to feed him while he rambled about how Tony Stark needed to build a machine that zapped him everytime he said something stupid. Peter didn’t follow the train of thought Wade did, but agreed nonetheless. As he ate he glanced out the large window of the building. The city moved carefree around them, and Peter tried to suppress the anxiety that filled his gut when he realized Carnage was still out there somewhere. Somewhere Carnage was healing, and planning his next move. It terrified the hero. 

“Spiderman.” 

Peter and Wade turned to the voice. Johnny was leaning against the door frame with his lips in a thin line. His arms were crossed tightly, and Peter could practically feel the heat radiating off him. 

“Hey Johnny,” Peter greeted nonchalantly after taking the last bite extended to him. 

“Reed wants you both in the main room,” Johnny stated simply. Peter sighed to himself. 

“Johnny, ease up okay? I know I screwed the pooch on this one,” Peter mumbled as he let go of Wade’s hand to move to the side of the bed. Wade stood and hovered over the young hero just in case he were to stumble. Peter winced at the pain that shot through his abdomen, but stood steadily. 

Johnny scoffed harshly, and refused to meet Peter’s eyes. “You think?” 

Wade looked ready to jump in, so Peter quickly cut him off. “It isn’t anyone’s fault but my own, Johnny. Don’t blame yourself.” 

Johnny just shrugged in response. With an eye roll, Peter hobbled over to the grumpy space heater and tossed an arm around him. Johnny pouted as he looked away, but Peter just shot him a warm smile. 

“You’re an idiot,” Johnny accused as he wrapped his arms around the fellow young hero. Peter hugged back just as tightly regardless of his injuries. He really had fucked up this time, but hopefully when he explained everything they’d understand better. 

“Honestly, if I didn’t want to be the one end game with Spidey, I’d say you two were absolutely adorable,” Wade cooed. 

“You’re an absolute ass,” Peter retorted as he squeezed Johnny one last time before letting go. He turned to Wade with a risen brow that was clearly visible under the mask. Wade just patted the boy’s head as he walked past them as if he owned the place. Peter watched him walk away with a small smile that was still visible since his mask was raised. Johnny didn’t miss it. 

“You really  _ are  _ an idiot,” Johnny scoffed as he tore off the mask Peter wore once Wade had disappeared. 

Peter scowled at him as he tried to tame his mask hair. “Can we deal with one thing at a time, please?” A blush coated Peter’s cheeks as he avoided Johnny’s accusing stare. 

“Bi boys stick together. Are you really crushing on a  _ mercenary _ ?” Johnny inquired as he pulled on Peter’s ear. 

The blush coated Peter’s cheeks thicker. “Are you really sleeping with  _ Daken _ ?” 

At that, Johnny flicked Peter between the brows. “Touché. Don’t tell my sister about that,” he murmured with a blush. “Or Deadpool, since he practically lives up Logan’s ass.” - Peter couldn’t deny that - “Akihiro and I are… complicated.” 

Peter smirked as he nudged his close friend. “Trust me, I know the feeling.” 

 

***

 

Peter and Johnny entered the living space, and noticed Wade had made himself comfortable on one of the sofas. Sue and Reed sat side by side on another sofa while Ben leaned back in a arm chair while glaring at the last body in the room. Eddie sat stiffly in his own chair, his wrists secured with the specialized cuffs and the collar around his neck. His face was impassive, yet Peter could see his jaw clenched. He was clearly worried about the topic of their immediate discussion. 

“I’m surprised you don’t have any bullet holes in the place yet,” Peter commented as he stepped into the room. The group looked to him and Johnny as they entered. 

“I do have  _ some  _ self control,” Wade scoffed playfully as he watched the remasked hero. Peter knew he must look ridiculous in regular sweatpants and a soft blue cottons shirt alongside a spiderman mask. He wasn’t quite mentally prepared for the identity reveal to Wade, and he knew it would be better to do it in a more appropriate setting. 

Peter rose a brow in challenge as he sat down beside the merc. His body still ached, and he practically crooned when Wade rubbed his fingers against his sore shoulder blades. He knew Wade was usually touchy, but it was usually playful and sarcastic. This felt far more domestic than their previous interactions, and Peter assumed it had to due to the near death experience. 

With a deep breath, Reed sat up straight with a small pad in his hands. The elastic superhero looked just as uneasy as Peter felt. “I was able to find a video that is currently being broadcasted on all major networks. The news just shows a small clip, but I found the original after a little digging.” 

Peter’s stomach dropped at his words. “What is the news saying?” 

That made Susan stiffen. Her eyes looked to Peter apologetically. “They’re saying that you teamed up with Venom to fight Carnage in an attempt to hide the fact you had originally worked with him.” Peter’s gaze shifted to the window as he thought about what New York must think of him currently. “They also think you died because they recovered a body at the scene, and haven’t identified it yet.” 

With a nod, Peter turned back to Sue. “They probably think the body of the criminal is mine, or they’re trying to find out why he was there too.” Peter frowned as he wrung his hands together. It was bound to be a shit show outside this building. 

“I have a few questions before we watch the video,” Reed said after a moment. The tension in the room spiked at his words. “Firstly, why did you go about this by yourself? Do you not trust us?” Peter flinched at the sound of betrayal in Reed’s voice. 

“I trust you guys with my life. I didn’t want anyone else getting hurt.” Peter kept his gaze everywhere but Reed’s face as he spoke. Shame burned his cheeks and soured his tongue. “I always get everyone killed, and I didn’t want to lose you guys too.” 

“Peter, you won’t lose us,” Johnny reassured as he turned to face him. 

Defiance surfaced him Peter’s chest, but he kept silent instead. He knew too many people around him who would say differently if they still could breathe. 

Suddenly Sue cleared her voice to gain everyone's attention. “We also want to know why you broke out Venom.” 

Peter frowned at her words. “Venom has a vendetta against Carnage, and he knows his weak points. It felt… I’ve done if before, and it worked so it felt natural to ask him for his help.” The young hero glanced at the symbiote host quickly. “I also left things on a bad note, and I needed to right my wrongs.” 

While it didn’t look like the Fantastics agreed, they nodded at his explanation. They continued to ask questions, and Wade remained silent the whole time. He was clearly absorbing Spiderman’s words, but didn’t ask any questions himself. This made Peter conclude he would get the third degree when they were alone again. Out of everyone in the room, he knew Wade had been hurt the most by the whole ordeal. 

“I do have one question for you, Spiderman,” Eddie said suddenly. Peter rose a brow at that, but nodded nonetheless. “How did Carnage get an upper hand on the inside? You were just supposed to lead him out, but instead  _ you  _ were  _ thrown  _ out.” 

The question made the hairs on Peter’s neck stand as he remembered Carnages words. _ Deadpool isn’t much different than I am… I wonder how Deadpool will feel when I drop your heart off on his doorstep… Just seeing the look of complete and utter heartbreak will be enough for me!  _

All of a sudden, Wade was gripping Peter’s hands carefully. Peter jumped in surprise before looking to his hands. He flushed in embarrassment when he realized in his panic he’d cut his nails into the palms of his hands. Carefully, he let out a steady breath before he spoke. “He was insulting and threatening Deadpool. It made me angry and distracted.” He didn’t discuss how it had also been due to his shoulder injury. He was distracted, yes, but he would have been able to evade the shots at him had it not been for his shoulder. No part of him wanted to admit that in front of the mercenary. 

The merc seemed unconvinced, but ignored that for now. “What did he say about me?” Wade asked instead as he let go of Peter’s hand. Immediately Peter’s skin felt cold without the contact. 

“Bullshit is what he said,” Peter grunted as he glared at the carpet. Just remembering the words and the threat made his skin crawl. 

_ Deadpool isn’t much different than I am. _

Wade looked like he wanted a better answer, but settled for now. He was sure to bring it up later. 

After a second, Reed held up the pad in his hands. “Let’s watch this then. I’ll have more inquiries after I’m sure.” 

Once everyone agreed, he pressed a few buttons. Peter winced as a projection appeared. It was filmed from a cell phone, and it showed the fight. The video began while Peter was still inside the building. The person had started filming when they’d heard Carnage’s scream. They were rushing down the street, and came to a screeching halt when suddenly none other than Spiderman came barreling across the cement. Wade immediately tensed as they quietly watched. 

_ “Is that all you got?! Come on Spiderman!”  _

Peter watched, but mainly analyzed every move he should have made or every mistake Carnage would make. He needed be prepared for next time. 

_ “Course it isn’t. Just warming up, thought I’d let that rusty arm of yours get in a few good hits.” _

“You’re an idiot,” Wade muttered. He was tense and his eyes were sharp as he watched the projection. 

_ Wonder how many times I’m going to hear that today,  _ Peter thought to himself with a frown. As Venom suddenly jumped into the action, Wade moved to press this fingers against Peter’s right side. Peter winced and glared at the mercenary whose mouth was in a thin line. 

“How’d you  _ really  _ get this cut?” Wade asked as he continued to watch. He must have seen the blood on the video. 

Peter noticed Reed also listening while the others watched the exchange between Venom and Carnage. Reed clearly hadn’t quite bought his initial answer either. Peter chewed his lip nervously as he felt the phantom pain in his shoulder. He really didn’t need Wade blaming himself. “I wasn't lying when I said what he told me distracted me. I’ll tell you the rest later, okay?” Peter whispered back. 

Before Wade could reply, the video let off the sound of Venom’s scream as the real attack began. As they watched, Wade grew increasingly tense as hit after hit landed on Peter’s shoulder. Carnage was aiming at it for a reason. A cold sweat broke out on Peter’s skin as he realized Wade had begun to piece together why Peter had gotten so injured. 

“Fuck,” Wade cussed as he put his face in his hands. “Fuck, fuck, fuck.” 

Peter was quick to place a hand on Wade’s arm. “It wasn’t your fault,” Peter insisted. Reed was now definitely listening to them as was Johnny. He wanted to yell at them that they were turning into the Fantastic Nosy, but ignored them instead. 

Quickly, Wade’s head turned to Peter. His head was still hung low, but Peter didn’t miss the slight shake of his body. “ _ Your shoulder. _ ”

Before Peter could continue to insist it wasn’t Wade’s fault, Carnage’s gravely voice spoke up from the projection. It made a chill visibly rake through Peter’s body.  _ “You know, most spiders liquefy their prey from the inside out. Meanwhile, you’re just an annoying bug!”  _

Wade remained tense as he watched Peter shoot off the fire bomb. Johnny whistled, impressed, as Carnage rolled around in agony. Even Ben commented on Peter’s brains. Peter had been designing them for weeks, and he was grateful they had at least aided the duo in some way. If he could improve them, they would help better. Already his mind was racing with different equations. 

_ “Eddie! We have to keep him over here _ !” 

Peter could see others surrounding the camera holder, and their questions were making the audio difficult to understand.  _ What is going on? Is that Spiderman? Oh my god! It’s aliens! What have you seen so far? Has anyone called the police?  _ And more. 

_ “You motherfucker!”  _

__ Wade practically shook in rage as Carnage flung Peter across the lot. Even Peter winced as he saw himself crumble against the brick wall. His casted wrist flamed as he remembered the pain. He continued to watch, and his stomach dropped as he saw himself fly onto the top of the warehouse. The flames were licking up the building, so the camera zoomed in. Carnage stood over Venom with his extended lance, and Peter turned away as he saw himself on the screen come into view. 

A gasp came from Sue and Reed as they saw what transpired. Johnny and Ben quickly averted their eyes. Meanwhile, Wade looked at the projection with fingers clenched so tightly together Peter could hear them breaking. Carefully, Peter rested his uninjured hand on Wade’s, who jumped at the contact. Wade didn’t move his eyes as Peter slowly unlaced the merc’s fingers, and held them in place to heal properly. He tried to block out the video as he focused on the mending of Wade’s bones.  _ Scrambled. _

“Don’t you ever do anything like that again,” Wade practically ordered as the people on the video started screaming. 

Peter rested his masked forehead against Wade’s shoulder. “You know me.” That made Wade clench his jaw tightly. He knew he couldn’t talk Peter out of his moral code. 

“After that, I took Spiderman back to the apartment,” Eddie spoke. Reed cancelled the projection as they all turned to the symbiote. “I wanted to make it to here, but I couldn’t make it that far. I had planned to call you when I arrived,” Eddie explained as he nodded to Reed. 

Eddie glanced around nervously - his eyes landing on Wade. Peter guessed Wade had threatened him when he found out what had happened to Spiderman.

“How did I get to the tower then? How did Deadpool know I was at the tower?” Peter inquired as he sat up fully. He was completely confused. 

“I was at the apartment.” 

Peter’s heart dropped as he jerked to look at Wade. His heart hammered in his chest as his eyes widened like saucers. He felt like he was going to vomit as his head spun while the pain in his side flared from his fast movements. Wade quickly gripped his shoulders as his vision blurred from the pain. 

“Careful you idiot,” Wade scolded while Peter tried to clear his pain clouded mind. 

“I knew the apartment was a safehouse to Spiderman since his photographer lives there,” Eddie said with a shrug. The lie was for Deadpool, and luckily sounded believable. “I’m assuming Deadpool was there to try to ask Parker if he knew where Spiderman was.” 

The words didn’t sound right. It sounded too convenient. Peter curled in on himself as he tried to push away the pain. No, Peter thought with a shake of his head, that made total sense. Of course Wade would have gone to his apartment to try to find the arachnid. Peter was Deadpool’s only link to Spiderman. Wade didn’t know that Peter Parker was Spiderman. He couldn’t know, or he’d be in danger. Spiderman had already put Deadpool in enough danger. If Wade became entangled in every fiber of Peter, he’d be in more danger than ever before. 

A foggy memory of seeing Wade formed in his mind. He remembered the look of horror on Wade’s face when he’d seen the webslinger bleeding out. It made his stomach churn. He’d hurt Wade far too many times already. 

“Yeah, it was a lucky guess,” Wade replied stiffly as he looked over the smaller man. “Also, no gymnastics for you until you’re healed you webhead.” Peter just nodded as his vision cleared. 

“Well then,” Johnny sighed as he sat up before clapping his hands together. “What is our plan to get rid of Carnage?” 

Reed pursed his lips in thought while Sue frowned. 

“I like the idea of clobbering him,” Ben suggested as he took a drink from his tea cup. It made a small smirk form on Peter’s lips. The funny sight helped calm his extremely overstimulated nerves. 

With a deep sigh, Wade sat back. “Personally, I think it would be best if you all stayed out of it.” Johnny gawked at Wade before the mer continued, “I would be best suited to do it. I’ve done it before, and I’m the only one here with no chance of dying.” 

“Excuse you, but have you seen me?” Ben scoffed as he set his tea cup down irritably. Peter didn’t even giggle like he usually would, instead he was staring at Wade mortified. 

“And i’m a walking ball of flames! His weakness, hello?” Johnny scoffed in disbelief. 

“You’ve both died before, right?” Deadpool accused with a risen brow. The group was silent at that. “Besides, I’ve done this before. He’s crazy, but predictable. I don’t like the idea, but I can think like him if I want to,” Wade explained with a frown. He had a distant look in his eyes that made Peter sick.  _ Deadpool isn’t much different than I am. _

“No.” 

Wade glanced down and frowned as Peter sat up and narrowed his eyes at the merc. “Look, Spidey-”

“I said no, Wade.” Peter clenched his jaw tightly. 

“I can’t die, so it’s only natural that I go against him,” Wade insisted. “You sure as hell aren’t going against him again. I’m not going to risk losing you again.” Wade’s voice was hard as stone, and Peter could tell he was trying to appear as  _ Deadpool  _ as possible. 

“You don’t think I know that I fucked up?” Peter scoffed as he stood up angrily. His blood was boiling with how  _ easily  _ Wade always threw around his life. His nightmares came back at full force at the thought. “Do  _ you  _ realize how easily he can break bones and make you feel like death would be a luxury?” 

Wade stood as well, and crossed his arms. Even though his face was shadowed, Peter could still see the burning in his beautiful blue eyes. “Which is exactly why you aren’t trying this again.”

Peter stood tall and glared at the man before him in defiance. “I’ve done some straight up crazy things to get rid of him, and they’ve worked! Trial and error is how I function. I  _ know  _ I can beat him!”

“I know I can beat him and I know I wont  _ die _ ,” Wade snapped angrily. 

“Please you two,” Sue said as she tried to gain their attention. 

“Just because you can’t die doesn’t mean you can’t be  _ hurt _ ! How many times do I have to say that?!” The young man’s body protested at the abuse Peter was inflicting on himself by trying to appear domineering. His side ached, and he could feel blood seeping from his stitches. 

Wade groaned loudly at that. “I’ve talked about this before! It doesn’t matter what happens to me! So long as you’re safe it doesn’t matter. Why do you feel like  _ you  _ have to be the one to take him down? Why can’t you rely on  _ me _ ?” Wade accused with pain in his voice. “Do you not trust me?” 

“Of course I trust you!” Peter exclaimed angrily. “And for fucksakes Wade! I  _ care  _ about what happens to you! And do you know why I have to be the one to take him out?” Peter asked, near hysterics. He could feel his eyes watering and his voice breaking. “It’s all my fault he even  _ exists _ ! If I had just left that stupid  _ thing  _ where it came from and not brought it back to Earth there would be no symbiotes here!” Peter was shaking now. His mask was damp with salty tears. Words were tumblings from his mouth like a waterfall.  _ Don’t say it! Don’t say it! _

“Spiderman, it’s okay,” Reed began as he tried to place a hand on the spider’s shoulder. Peter was quick to shrug it off. 

“You of all people know it’s true, Reed,” Peter stated. “The reason Carnage exists in the first place is because I  _ bonded  _ with a  _ symbiote _ !”

Peter was full blown sobbing behind his mask now. He’d been told time and time again none on this was his fault, but how he could he believe that? Everything that ever happened was his fault! The symbiotes coming to Earth, Eddie being forced to be Venom, Harry going crazy and Peter being too scared and confused to help with a cure, Uncle Ben’s death,  _ Gwen dying.  _ He was a walking disaster. 

Before Peter could process what was happening, he was wrapped in a tight embrace. He whimpered when he felt Wade’s hands soothe against his back while he cried. Peter hated appearing weak, but he was too  _ exhausted.  _ Getting rid of Carnage was supposed to be a form of redemption for himself, but he couldn’t even get that right. He was  _ weak.  _ He was too weak to defeat Carnage, too weak to save those around him, to weak to confess everything about himself to Wade. He needed to become stronger, but he  _ couldn’t.  _

“I think it would be best if we forgot about this for a bit,” Wade suggested as Peter hiccuped into his shoulder. “Carnage is bound to be in hiding until he heals fully. For now, I think it’s best to lay low and regain our strength.” 

Reed made a sound of agreement. “From the time I studied the symbiotes, they do heal quickly, but they still do need time to heal their hosts. Cletus Kasady was clearly injured, so we should have a few days until he fully heals and then regroups.” 

“What do we do until then?” Johnny asked, worry clear in his voice. He was clearly distressed as he watched his closest friend crumble. 

“I think it would be best just to let Peter rest. He’s in no condition to be doing anything anyways. We’ll talk about who is doing what once wounds are less fresh,” Reed stated. “It might be better if he heals at home as well.” 

Johnny looked to him like he’d grown a second head. “Are you serious?” 

“Carnage doesn’t know his identity, right?” Sue hummed in as she thought over Reed’s suggestion. “If he heals quickly, he’ll be looking here or at Stark’s first. I would like to use our equipment to imprison him without endangering Spiderman. Carnage knows Spiderman is hurt. Not to mention Spiderman’s family will be worried come Sunday and he’s not home,” Susan said. Peter thought of Aunt May at Sue’s words. 

“Exactly,” Reed agreed. “He should stay here another night, then we can move him. What do you think Spiderman?” 

Peter inhaled a shaky breath as he looked up away from Wade’s chest. His face felt gross being stuck in the damp mask, and his body ached from all the stress he’d endured. “I think I need to sleep first.” 

“Before that,” Eddie cut in. They all turned to him once more as he gained their attention. “Carnage  _ might  _ know Spiderman’s identity.” 

The hold Wade had on Peter tightened protectively. It made the thick tar like feeling that rose in his chest at the thought simmer. “How?” Wade demanded. 

Eddie exhaled a long sigh. “The symbiotes. Venom knows who Spiderman is, hence why I know his identity.” - Peter could hear Wade grind his teeth together at the information - “His spawn would as well then.” He glanced up to Wade. “Granted, Carnage might have not felt the need to tell Kasady. The only reason Venom told me was because-” From the way Wade tightened his hold again and Eddie stopped talking, Peter guessed Wade had shot a heated glare at the host. “Either way, Cletus Kasady has never once indicated knowing his real identity. If he did he would have tried to kill him by now.” 

Everyone was quiet for a moment, and Peter just continued to inhale the scent of gunpowder and leather that still clung to Wade’s skin. It calmed him down, and made his stiff shoulders lax. It embarrassed him to admit it, but he was touch starved and Wade was the perfect person to quench that hunger. 

“I’ll guard him,” Wade suddenly spoke. 

“I’m not a princess, Wade.” Peter said with a hoarse tone to his voice. 

“I’m not calling you one, webhead.” Wade pulled Peter back, and nodded up and down Peter’s body. “Do you think you’re in any condition to even swing around New York? Let alone face Carnage?” 

That made Peter turn away in irritation. His pride was getting the better of him, but, really, he’d been doing this for seven years now. It was a hard pill to swallow to let someone protect him when he was always the one doing the protecting. Not to mention a part of him that scolded him for taking advantage of Wade’s kindness. Everything the merc did recently had been for Peter’s best interest. Hell, the man had given up killing for Spiderman, and, yet here he was keeping his identity a secret and denying the chemistry that was like sweet honey on his skin. 

Peter let out a long sigh. “I know you’re right.” 

At that, Reed clapped his hands together. “Okay, meeting adjourned. We’ll discuss this more tomorrow, yes? For now, doctors orders, get some shut eye Spiderman.” 

Peter nodded solemnly while his mind drifted to what would become of him and Wade now. 

 

***

 

Wade closed the door softly as he exited Peter’s room. The spider had fallen asleep shortly after his head had hit the pillow, and Wade was pleased he was getting much needed rest. Peter was emotionally exhausted, and Wade could tell from the way his strong demeanor had completely collapsed earlier. He knew that the young hero had bonded with a symbiote, but to hear the pain in his voice at the memory made Wade’s chest ache. 

He wanted to destroy the Venom symbiote, Eddie Brock be damned. 

Instead, he calmly wondered back into the living space where everyone was still seated. Reed was still examining the video while Sue and Johnny set out a pitcher of water and glasses for everyone. The room was tense. The super family was clearly distressed with what had happened to Peter. Even now, Susan’s hands shook slightly as she tried to drink from her glass. Wade was grateful Peter had such a good awkwardly knit together family that cared about him so much. 

“I don’t know what your moral codes are like, but I don’t have any,” Wade stated as he flopped back down on the sofa. 

Johnny smirked at that as he took a seat on the opposing side of the couch. “I usually do to some degree, but I’m questioning them.” 

That made the merc smirk back in return before be sombered. “I still don’t think it’s a good idea to get you all involved. Peter would be heartbroken if something happened to you all.” 

They all spun to face him in shock as he used Spiderman’s real name. “How do you know his identity?” Reed questioned as he looked wide eyed to the merc. The whole reason they were using the term Spiderman and Peter was sauntering around in the mask to was to  _ maintain  _ his secret. 

Wade shrugged. “I found it out recently when I was trying to track down the webhead before he ran off on this stunt.” He was going to mention the photo, but it felt too intimate to tell them. That was  _ their  _ moment. 

“It was mentioned you  _ know  _ Peter,” Johnny said carefully as he assessed Wade. He was clearly wondering how to handle his friends secret being exposed without the other man knowing. 

Wade nodded at that. “We met in a laundromat a few weeks ago. He was my direct link to Spiderman, so I went to find Peter to ask if he could help me find the webhead. He wasn’t home, but the kid left out his webshooters and it clicked.” Wade didn’t mention he didn’t clue into the webshooters at first, and only did afterwards because of the photo.  _ Their  _ photo. 

At Wades words, Reed rubbed his temples. “So you broke in and entered?” 

That made Wade cock a brow. “You wouldn’t have done that if you thought Spidey was walking to his death?” 

Reed scratched the white hair on the side of his scalp as he muttered his understandings. “Well, what do you want to do about Carnage? He’s quite literally impossible to kill from what he know.” The elastic man looked up at Wade after he spoke. 

The question hung in the air for a moment as Wade thought it over. It was true, he hadn’t been able to kill the symbiote the first time around. He didn’t have the faintest clue how to kill him, only to immobilize him. He could be injured, but could he die? 

_ He’s quite literally like a cockroach.  _

__ **_Excuse me_ ** **, we’re the cockroach! Hes’ lice! Lice! Lice!**

_ You’re both immature and annoying.  _

“We could always imprison him. You’ve worked on symbiotes before. I’m sure we can figure something out,” Wade suggested. He fiddled with the string of his hoodie to keep his hands busy. If not he would be bouncing around, and running off to blow the shitty cowboys head off. 

**_Excuse me_ ** **again! Comparing that tub of spam is insulting to Jack and Ennis!**

_ Even I have to agree with shithead on this one. How dare you insult the gay cowboys by lumping spam tub on the list of cowboys.  _

“I’m walking on eggshells with you two today,” Wade muttered to himself. The Fantastics looked confused before brushing it off. It was Deadpool after all. 

“We do have a chemical inhibitor, but it can’t do much more than that. Similar to the collar and cuffs,” Reed said as he motioned to Eddie’s confined state. Wade’s shoulders slumped at the man’s words. 

Susan spoke after a small pause. “We can’t separate the symbiote from Kasady since they are one in the same now. The best we can do is lock them up and use the inhibitor.” 

“What about your internal explosion thing you can do?” Wade inquired. 

**I don’t like thinking about Earth 12101!**

_ That didn’t necessarily correlate.  _

**My head hurts thinking about it!**

_ We don’t have a head.  _

**Fuck off!**

Susan frowned as she thought about it. “Don’t know how well it would work. He might still heal-” 

**Like we did!**

_ Shut up idiot. Your random tangents are confusing the audience.  _

“-and I’m not sure Spiderman would appreciate us killing Kasady. While he hates the symbiote, he still has his moral code as do we.” Susan sighed as she ran her fingers through her hair. She looked tired as did the rest of them. 

Since the conversation wasn’t going anywhere, Wade switched directions. He turned to the symbiote who narrowed his eyes at the look. He was intimidated by Wade, but clearly felt somewhat secure in the building. Wade imagined if they had both met suited up that there would be no hint of fear in the man’s eyes. The man seemed to have realized this as well considering how he’d changed his attitude. It irritated the merc. 

“Why did you let him get hurt?” Wade’s voice was thick with an underlying threat as he leaned back into the sofa. He knew even if he appeared casual the aura he emitted was anything but. The Venom symbiote must have noticed it as it tried to grow across the man’s skin at the clear threat in the room. 

The host licked his chapped lips as he sat back. He spoke carefully, “Venom was in charge. Spiderman said not to bother if he got hurt, Venom listened. Venom still resents Spiderman. I was able to save him because of the damage done to me by Carnage.” Wade was clenching his fists so tightly they ached. “Venom didn’t care what happened to Spiderman.” 

A loud bang echoed in the room as well as an shout of pain. Susan and Reed looked in shock at the bleeding symbiote while Johnny just sipped his water - he had seen Wade pull the gun when the symbiote host first spoke - and Ben looked conflicted as to if he should immobilize Wade or nod in approval. 

“You asked you pile of shit,” Eddie snapped as he gripped his shattered kneecap. The symbiote was freaking out as it tried to desperately encompass its host. 

“You’ll heal once that  _ thing  _ is all over you again,” Wade said with a shrug. It was nice to be able to shoot some of his frustration out. He wished he was back at his warehouse so he could completely demolish the Carnage drawing with bullets. He scratched at one of the scabs on his cheek casually as he pocketed his pistol again. 

Reed sighed deeply as he shook his head. “You really don’t have self control.” 

Wade smirked at that. “Waiting this long demonstrates I do, in fact, have some self control.” 

A chuckle escaped Johnny’s lips as he shook his head while watching the mercenary. Wade appeared pleased with his surprise attack on the symbiote, and the tension had left his shoulders. “Peter really is a nutjob,” Johnny whispered to himself with a grin. At least he picked someone who would shoot kneecaps in his honour.

  
  


***

 

“What the fuck am I going to tell Wade?” 

Johnny glanced up from his phone at Peter’s words. It was the next afternoon, and Wade was making some food for the webslinger. Johnny had informed him they’d all had another meeting once Peter was asleep. It had ended with Wade shooting Eddie in the kneecap for not saving Peter, and the Fantastic Four doubting Peter was sain in the mind for hanging out with the mercenary. He’d just shrugged at that because Peter really couldn’t explain him and Deadpool without someone saying he was insane. 

“What do you mean?” Johnny asked as he cocked his brow. 

Peter groaned as he rested his arm over his forehead. He had a headache from hell. “He said he was going to watch over me. While I don’t mind him playing nurse and staying away from Carnage, we have a problem. My  _ identity _ .” After he spoke Peter cracked an eye open and noticed Johnny’s thoughtful expression. 

“Well shit,” Johnny muttered. Something crossed his face that Peter couldn’t decipher before he spoke carefully, “I forget sometimes he doesn’t know. I’ve almost called you Pete a million times.” 

Peter dismissed the odd expression, and nodded before exhaling. “I want to tell him,” he began. Johnny waited as the spider collected his thoughts. After a moment, Peter continued. “I’m just scared. I don’t want him to reject me, you know? He’ll be so mad when he realizes I’ve been hiding from him like this.” It was annoying to Peter how easily he’d turned into a cry baby over Wade Wilson considering his eyes were already damp at the thought. “Not to mention what that would mean for him. He’s already gotten hurt because of me, and I don’t want him to get more hurt because he gets completely trapped in the fucked up life of Peter Parker.” 

A hand came and rested on Peter’s leg. The young hero looked up to see his friend looking at him sympathetically. “Look, Pete. While I don’t support the merc’s morals - which might I remind you, you have changed for the better - I do know that he cares about you. It’s pretty obvious its gone from sarcastic to genuine,” Johnny explained with a warm smile. “He’ll accept it fine, trust me.” 

Peter pursed his lips as he rolled onto his side. “He’s been hurt so much, I don’t want to put him through that too. But, this secret, it’s going to hurt him.” It made Peter nauseous to think about. What if Wade walked out of Peter’s life because he’d felt betrayed that Peter hadn’t told him all that time ago in the laundromat? 

“Peter, you don’t  _ owe  _ him your identity. When you tell him, it’s because you want to tell him. He knows that, he wouldn’t feel any resentment to you for keeping your identity a secret. I’m sure he has some skeletons in his closet he hadn’t told you about yet either. Just let it happen, and go from there,” Johnny suggested. “And like I said,  _ he won’t care.  _ He won’t be mad. It’ll be  _ fine. _ ” He squeezed Peter’s leg once more in reassurance as the hero processed the words. 

“Who knew a birthday candle could make up a speech more inspiring than  _ Happy Birthday, _ ” Peter joked. Johnny snorted, but smiled nonetheless because he knew Peter was just deflecting with a joke. He could tell his friend was taking his small speech seriously. 

Peter shimmied further into the blankets, and let out a long sigh. He was emotionally drained, and that wasn’t to mention his physical injuries. Still, his mind drifted to the feeling of Wade holding him the day before to keep him grounded. It made his heart race and cheeks warm. 

_ I’ll be okay Wade. I have something to tell you after this is all over.  _

 

****

 

In the end, Peter didn’t say anything about where they were going. Once they had gotten into Reed’s private car, Wade had suggested his safe house in Queens. He was clearly worried by Eddie’s earlier hypothesis. Peter had never been to Wade’s safe house before - Wade insisted he had in the future in a different Earth, and then said something about video games and their love child which Peter ignored - so it was safe to say he was nervous. They were entering Wade’s turf now, but it showed trust. They were the places Wade hid when shit hit the fan, yet he was still sharing this with Peter. It made his stomach flip, but he just breathed in through his nose to keep himself calm. 

This was it, there was no turning back now. He had promised himself that day in the jet that if he lived he’d tell Wade about his feelings. Granted, Peter had hoped it would be once the threat of Carnage was out of the way. Still, did Peter even want to risk turning back now just because circumstances were different? He’d almost lost it all. It was now or never, and never wasn’t an option anymore. ‘Never’ hadn’t been an option since Wade walked into that laundromat nearly two months previous. 

He was… god he couldn't even say it in his head, how was he supposed to say it out loud? 

“We’re here bugbrain,” Wade joked as he motioned to the building outside the car doors. 

Coming back to reality, Peter nodded before he got out of the car. He kept his head down to avoid anyone noticing his masked face, so he couldn’t take a good look at the building. Wade grabbed a bag Reed had given them with medicine for Peter as well as medical equipment. The older man had been clearly uncomfortable with the needles in the bag, so Peter had packed the equipment instead. The grateful look on Wade’s face made Peter all the more sure that whatever was between them ran deep. They  _ knew _ each other. 

“Come on baby boy,” Wade coaxed as he laid a warm hand against the base of Peter’s spine. Usually, as Spiderman just a few weeks ago, Peter would have webbed him to a wall. Instead, he found himself subconsciously melting into the touch. 

They quickly made their way inside, and had to take four flights up stairs. By the first flight, Peter was already wheezing in pain at exerting himself. Reed had said his insides were still bruised, and his cut had only just formed a thin red line rather than an open wound. Wade chuckled with a shake of his head as Peter tried to play it off. It was clear that his healing factor was about as strong as a spaghetti noodle was. 

Without a second thought, Wade squatted down. “My turn to feel you all hot and bothered against  _ my _ back,” Wade snickered. 

Peter scoffed, but complied nonetheless. “You know, I’m going to start calling you Lamepool.” Wade’s back was warm against Peter’s chest, and without thinking about it Peter’s cheek came to rest on the man’s shoulder. With little dignity left, Peter let himself wrap his arms tightly around Wade’s neck. 

That made a deep laugh emit from the merc’s mouth. “You know, that is a real shit comeback.” He wrapped his hand under Peter’s thighs to keep him lifted, and the sensation made Peter honestly have to try to not get hot and bothered. He refused to pop a boner against the dimples of Wade’s back. 

“Fuck you,” Peter retorted which only made the merc laugh again. As Wade climbed the flights, Peter rubbed his thumb gently against Wade’s collar bone. It made the thudding of the man’s heart increase slightly. “I’m guessing we’re going to have the dreaded talk you’ve been hinting at?” 

Wade hummed in agreement with little sympathy. “Yeah. I’m not sure you really understand how stupid that was.” 

Peter scowled. “You would have done the same thing if you were in my shoes.” As he spoke Wade stepped off the staircase and down a hall on the fourth floor. Wade juggled with the keys in his pocket outside of an apartment that read  _ 402\.  _ Peter rolled his eyes with embarrassed amusement as he noticed Wade had used a sharpie to draw a swapping arrow between the 0 and 2. 

“Yes, but my ‘shoes’ would be like the nokia of shoes while yours are the iphone. I aint anything pretty or shiny but I’m durable. You’re pretty and you break too easily,” Wade explained the odd metaphor as he jimmied the door open. 

“I’m not some Bella fucking Swan, Wade,” Peter huffed. 

“And I’m not some pretty Edward Cullen,” Wade agreed. He glanced over his shoulder, and Peter could see the outline of his scarred nose. “This just brings us full circle: I’m worried about you.” 

That shut Peter up as Wade stepped inside. Carefully the young hero got off the mercenaries back and glanced around the room. It was a bit messy with some dishes in the sink while two takeout boxes sat empty on the counter. A blanket was thrown across the back of the couch lazily, and articles of clothing and weaponry littered the floor. The fridge was absolutely absorbed by takeout menus to different restaurants hung by magnets. Peter nearly laughed when he saw a takeout menu from Toronto, Canada for  _ Panago.  _

“Why would you have a Canadian take out menu?” Peter questioned as he pointed to the refrigerator. 

Wade chuckled at Peter’s question. “Because I got to be a patriot, and remember my roots. Panago has  _ the best  _ pizza crust,” Wade insisted. “And the sweet cinnamon breadsticks are enough to kill for, trust me on that.” 

Peter rolled his eyes. He could see Wade killing over cinnamon sticks a few years ago. Ignoring the merc, Peter looked around again. The sun had almost fully set, so the room was dark with dark hues and shadows. “Didn’t take you for a One Direction fan,” he commented as he walked further into the room. He noticed a calendar of the boyband that was from 2015. Why Wade hadn’t replaced it was beyond Peter. Even though it was now April and far from 2015, the calendar was stuck on the month May.

The merc flicked the back of the Spider’s head. “Don’t insult the boyband of the century,” Wade pestered. Peter just rolled his eyes, but smiled fondly. He wouldn’t give Wade the satisfaction of knowing he had a few of their songs on his webslinging playlist. “I’ll order some pizza for us to eat, in the meantime you can have a nap. This place isn’t the nicest, but  _ mi casa es tu casa.  _ The bedroom is relatively clean since I rarely use it,” Wade admitted as he motioned to one of the three doors in the flat. 

“We don’t have to hold off on the talk for my sake. I’m well rested, and I’d rather not anxiously wait,” Peter admitted. His stomach churned at the idea, but he wanted to get over their fight quickly. Knowing how much unresolved issues they had made the hero anxious and upset. He wanted to go back to how they were before, or maybe go back to wherever they had been going before the warehouse. If they got over their issues then maybe…

With a sigh, Wade rubbed the back of his neck nervously. “It’s not that I want to start screaming and getting mad at you.” He sat himself tiredly on the sofa, and glanced up at Peter from behind the baseball cap. “I almost lost you, Spidey. If I had, I have no idea what I would do. You just ran off, and I didn’t know where you went, what you were doing, nothing.” The pain in his voice drove a knife into Peter’s already mangled gut. 

Hesitantly, Peter sat down beside the mercenary. Wade looked more vulnerable than Peter had ever seen him before. “I know. I fucked up,” Peter admitted after a moment. “You know, when I was flying to New York after breaking out Venom, I was horrified. I was scared that if I did die, the last thing you’d remember of me was what happened on that warehouse roof.” Peter’s throat constricted painfully as his eyes watered. “There were still so many things I wanted to tell you, Wade. I was scared that I would never be able to see you again, and that I would die knowing that the last thing I did to you was brain you on a fucking door.” It was evident by Peter’s hoarse voice that tears were welling up thick in his eyes. 

Wade gently placed a hand on Peter’s shoulder. His hand was warm, and so comforting it nearly made Peter choke on a sob. “Why wouldn’t you let me fight Carnage with you? Originally you wanted to team up, but then suddenly you kept Carnage underwraps from me.” 

_ Because you started to mean too much to me for me to risk you,  _ Peter thought as he fiddled with the hem of his shirt. He hated that he was still too scared to say it outloud. Peter Parker would just hurt Wade in the end like he had to everyone else he loved. He was petrified to risk it, but his heart ached as he tried to deny it. 

When Peter remained silent, Wade sighed. “You’re killing me here.” 

Looking up from behind his lashes, Peter’s heart thudded painfully in his chest. Wade looked exhausted and upset, and Peter knew he was the reason for the man’s stress. His gorgeous lips were turned down into a frown that didn’t suit the man’s cheerful personality. Peter would do anything to change that look, and make sure the man never looked so upset again. 

“Wade,” Peter said softly. He loved the way the single syllable sounded rolling off his tongue. The merc looked to him, and Peter looked down at the wood of the coffee table. His eyes scanned the contents distractingly as he tried to pull himself together. “The reason I did it alone-” Peter began, but suddenly stopped when his eyes landed on something. That something made Peter’s stomach drop as he gazed at it. The world spun as Peter tried to remember how to breathe as he saw it. A polaroid. 

_ The smell of leather and gunpowder.  _

__ Wade seemed to notice where Peter’s eyes had fallen, but he didn’t panic. Instead, he turned to face Peter on the sofa. His face was still hidden behind the ballcap, but Peter could feel the anxiety seeping off him. The ball was now in Peter’s court, he could pretend he hadn’t seen the purposely placed photo. Wade was once again giving him an out. He was telling Peter he knew, but if he wanted they could pretend he didn’t. Wade was always giving Peter a way out, the first time they met, all the times after, the van incident, there was always a way out for Peter. 

“Let me see your face,” Peter blurted as his pulse rang in his ears. His heart raced so fast he thought it would crush his ribs. 

At that, the merc flinched backwards. The man looked skeptical as he slowly attempted to relax his shoulders. “That’s a two way street, Spidey.” The words held the question:  _ Do you really want this? There isn’t any turning back.  _

__ Swallowing nervously, Peter gently took Wade’s large hands and brought them to the hem of his mask. All he could hear was the racing of his own blood in his ears as his spidey senses flashed slightly at the feeling of foreign fingers so close to his throat. His breathing was laboured as he felt a nervous sweat form across his body. 

“The reason I wanted you to stay away from Carnage is because I  _ care  _ about you Wade. I told you I had something to tell you,” Peter spoke softly as he tried to keep his voice from shaking.

Wade could feel the shake of the spider’s fingers, and quickly cupped the sides of Peter’s throat while stroking his scarred thumbs over his masked cheeks. His own heart was racing a mile a minute, threatening to stop all together. Part of him had hoped Peter would take the out because he didn’t want to hurt the younger man. Another part of him screamed in joy so immense he couldn’t process it. He was also worried, though. Peter wanted to see his face. What if he ran like Carmelita, or was disgusted by his scars like Siryn? 

No, Peter was different. He wasn’t disgusted by Wade’s skin.

“Please, Wade,” Peter begged softly. 

Wade’s fingers shook softly as he processed Peter’s plea. Carefully, as if the boy was made of china, Wade slowly hooked his fingers under the mask. He could feel the racing of Peter’s heart through the vein in his neck, fast and  _ alive.  _

Shyly, Peter raised his own fingers to grip at the edges of the hood Wade wore. He nearly flinched away, but carefully evened out his quickened breath. There was no going back, this was it, Wade realized. They only had a second to take everything back before there was no escape. 

Neither of them took the out. 

Wade’s breath hitched as he removed the mask, and finally gazed into those warm doe like brown eyes that had grown to mean the world to him. They’re dark colour trapped Wade as he gazed into them for the first time with no barrier. The golden freckles across his skin were adorable, and only highlighted the honey colour that surrounded Peter’s dark pupils. His hair was disheveled, but soft as feathers as Wade ran his fingers through it to lightly cradle the back of Peter’s head in his hands. Fondness softened Wade’s face as he saw the unjudging beautiful face of the only person in the world that he loved this way. 

Meanwhile, Peter was breathless. Wade was beautiful. His eyes shone so brightly and vulnerable that it made Peter melt. His features were gorgeous, from the slope of his nose to the definition of his jaw. Wade’s skin was mesmerizing. The texture was soft but rough against Peter’s fingers as he traced them from the man's temple to his throat. His worried face quickly faded into a fond expression that warmed Peter’s heart instantly. Those blasted butterflies swarmed Peter’s belly, and Peter for once didn’t try to contain them. 

Subconsciously, Wade leaned in slightly as he felt Peter’s breath fan his face. Peter noticed the movement, and moved closer himself. When Wade realized what Peter was allowing, his heart swelled so large he swore it burst from his chest. 

“Peter Parker,” Wade whispered softly as his lips ghosted over Peter’s own. 

“Wade Wilson,” Peter echoed back. 

“You’re sure you want this too?” Wade asked, pulling back a fraction. Wade glanced at his fingers in Peter’s hair, and wondered how the boy could stomach him. 

Peter noticed, and fully rested his hands against Wade’s neck to stroke the man's jaw. “For a long time,” Peter promised. 

With that, Wade moved forward and gently rested his lips against Peter’s own. It was softly, gentle, and still allowed for an out. It was hesitant, unsure, and worried. It was beautiful. 

“Wade,” Peter whispered as he pressed his lips more firmly against the older mans. 

That was all it took for the man to gather the hero in his arms. He deepened the kiss, tasting Peter on his tongue. He tasted like mint from the tea he’d drank earlier. As they kissed Wade was assaulted with the smell of vanilla, the scent that always followed Peter around. Wade was going to praise that candle and the man's body soap like they were gods. 

A warm feeling spread through Wade’s chest as he held the smaller man. Peter held his face and kissed him with no remorse, no regret. He wasn’t running, he was staying right here. He was kissing Wade like it was the only thing in the entire multi-verse that mattered, and maybe it was. Wade sure felt like it was. 

A gasp escaped Peter’s soft lips as they parted to breathe. His mind was racing a mile a minute, yet remained focused on the feeling of Wade’s warm chapped lips. The smell of gunpowder and leather filled his senses, and he remembered the scent from his bedsheets. Wade was all consuming, and Peter wanted to be consumed by him entirely. 

Wade was thinking the same thing as he kissed Peter again, making the hero moan into his mouth. Peter’s thumbs stroked Wade’s jaw as his fingers dug into his neck due to the heated kiss. It was a gentle sentiment within the heated moment that made the mercenary blush while a blossom of warmth expanded through his chest. 

**True love, true love!**

_ It must be true love. _

**Nothing else can break my heart like true love, true love!**

_ It must be true love! _

**No one else can break my heart like you!**

“The voices are quoting Pink because of you,” Wade chuckled against Peter’s soft pink lips. His heart was racing a mile a minute while his head felt like it was floating. 

“It better not be one of her angsty break up songs,” Peter joked before pressing his lips against the mercs again. “If it's  _ Boring  _ I will web you to your own ceiling.” 

Another breathless laugh spilled from Wade’s lips and against Peters. He was giddy with excitement as he moved his hands to rest on Peter’s hips. He stroked his thumb under Peter’s shirt and along his hip bones. It made a trail of goosebumps appear on the webslinger’s skin as he shivered. Wade suddenly became painfully aware of the hardness that pressed against his abdomen while his own pressed against Peter. Peter seemed to notice this as well as his thick lashes fluttered down as his breath hitched. 

“Wade-” 

Suddenly they were cut off by the loud ring of a phone. Wade groaned loudly as he pressed his face into Peter’s neck. The skin was warm and Wade loved the feeling of Peter’s pulse. “Turn that off,” Wade whined as he nipped at Peter’s throat. 

Peter chuckled as he fished his phone from his pocket. It was his Spiderman phone. He flipped it open and dread set into his stomach. “Oh fuck,” he cussed.

At the tension that appeared in Peter’s body, Wade glanced up. “What’s wrong?” he asked, suddenly on high alert as he gripped Peter’s thighs. 

Peter sighed as he showed the phone to Wade, the caller ID on the screen. “Daredad is calling.” 

 

***

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to add Carnage at the end, but he'll be mentioned real quick at the beginning of the next chapter and I felt like this chapter really had to focus on Wade and Peter's relationship. And also: here enters Matt Murdock! Yay! Also i love writing my little F4 family, they're adorable and their dynamic with Peter is so sweet in the comics.  
> Also got damn this update was 16.5k!!! INSANE!! Didn't feel that long, and it was supposed to be longer so I'm breaking it up into another part aha.  
> Sorry the update took so long, I'm a college student who's drowning in debt and assignments, but my exams end this week so I plan to update once more before school starts and updates may slow down again. I'll try my best to make sure they don't, though!  
> Please let me know what you think! You can find me @ louiswt.tumblr.com!  
> (ALSO I think there was an issue or something where Carnage did know Peter’s identity and tried to kill Aunt May??? But I honestly can’t remember, that could have been Eddie, and I’m writing this at four am so I’m too tired to bother looking, so if it did happen it's remitted/didn’t happen in this Earth. What Earth should we call this? Earth 402? That’s cute. Idk. I’m tired and gay.)


	6. *Where Have I Been*

Hello everyone.

I'm sorry this isn't an actual update, but the update will be coming within the week.  
Everyone probably is wondering what happened and why the update that I promised would take two weeks never came.  
Well, two days before New Years Eve, my friend and I were walking to work, and, while crossing at a crosswalk, we were struck by a large truck. We both flew about 15ft, and I slammed my forehead against the curb - resulting in a goose egg the size of a baseball on my forehead that has luckily now shrunk to an odd bump - two black eyes, two broken fingers, a fucked up knee, and bruised ribs. We were rushed to the hospital and miraculously we weren't dead or extremely injured, physically.  
Mentally has been a whole other story.  
I've been suffering from extreme anxiety and disassociation since the incident. I've been attending therapy to deal with it and work through this near death experience, and am slowly coming back to my own. Mentally, I'm not healed and probably won't be for a long time. I had thought I had died, and had accepted that. It was very surreal to realize I was still alive, and now I have to come to terms with all the problems this accident has caused. Hell, for the first two weeks I didn't even want to cross a street and hid in my house for the time. Driving is a whole other story as well.  
Hell, I tried to cross the crosswalk just yesterday and broke down into tears when a car almost blew the stop sign that I was hit on.  
Anyways, its been hard to get back into my writing since my mind tends to have a harder time focusing recently. School has been more difficult, and its been hard to do much but school and work these past two months. Thankfully I'm trying to pull myself out of this destructive habit that has festered since the accident. I started writing again and plan to post the next chapter soon as well as another fic I have been working on for a while now.  
It has been an uphill battle, but the comments on this fic really do make me happy when I'm feeling really out of my head.  
Thank you for your patience, and I promise I'll back back soon.

Love you all,  
Jordyn.

ps. here is the face reveal of the century lol

**Author's Note:**

> Title and beginning notes taken from Scar Tissue by Red Hot Chili Peppers  
> PROMPT:  
> 'i’m in my underpants in a laundromat waiting for my clothes to get washed and your clothes are in the machine next to mine and i noticed that when you put your clothes in they were all covered in blood what the fuck’ au  
> (very loosely based on this prompt i saw on tumblr)


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